TNPL 2023: Kovai Kings make it to the playoffs with win against Salem Spartans

Employing the long handle: Ram Arvindh’s unbeaten half-century powered Kovai Kings to an above-par total. 
| Photo Credit: E. LAKSHMI NARAYANAN

Defending champion Lyca Kovai Kings thrashed Salem Spartans by 79 runs and secured a place in the playoffs of TNPL-7 with its fifth win of the season at the Salem Cricket Foundation ground here on Tuesday.

Put in, Kovai Kings posted 199 for eight with S. Sujay (44) and B. Sai Sudharsan (41) setting the platform with a 75-run partnership for the second wicket.

Ram Arvindh (50 n.o., 22b, 2×4, 5×6) provided the perfect finish with a sensational knock as Kovai Kings finished with an above-par score.

Early trouble

In reply, the Spartans chase went off the rails immediately as pacer K. Gowtham Thamarai Kannan ran through the top-order, picking up three wickets and reducing the Salem side to 28 for four.

Sunny Sandhu and Muhammed Adnan Khan entertained the partisan crowd with a few big hits, but the target was beyond them.

Sizzling start

Earlier, Sai Sudharsan showed once again that he was in the form of his life by starting with a copybook on-drive off Abhishek Tanwar off the first ball he faced before flicking Sandhu majestically. Sai Sudharsan then produced two of the best shots of the day off Akash Sumra — a gorgeous cover-drive and a whip between midwicket and long-on off a rising delivery.

After Sai Sudharsan’s exit, Kovai Kings stuttered a bit, losing three wickets to slip to 106 for four from a healthy 90 for one.

Arvindh takes over

However, Ram Arvindh and left-hander Atheeq Ur Rahman (31, 18b) went after the Spartans bowlers to put the wind back in Kovai Kings’ sails.

Arvindh started by lofting Sumra over long-off with panache, hitting the ball through the line. He went on to showcase his wide range of strokes.

In the final over, Arvindh carved Tanwar’s wide yorker over deep point before swatting two more over midwicket to race to a half-century. The 21-run over ensured Spartans had a mountain to climb.

The scores: Lyca Kovai Kings 199/8 in 20 overs (S. Sujay 44, B. Sai Sudharsan 41, Atheeq Ur Rahman 31, Ram Arvindh 50 n.o., Sunny Sandhu 3/38) bt Salem Spartans 120 in 19 overs (Sunny Sandhu 29, K. Gowtham Thamarai Kannan 3/20, Shahrukh Khan 2/29).