KPL: Mangalore United make high profile start, beat Rockstars by 7 wickets

Mangalore Today News Network

Mysore, Aug 28, 2014: Defending champions Mangalore United eased to a seven-wicket victory over Rockstars (film stars XI) in the opening match of the Karbonn Karnataka Premier League (KPL) here tonight at Gangothri Glades ground.

Chasing 118, Mangalore cruised home with opener and star batsman Karun Nair top scoring with 46 (44 balls, 5x4, 1x6). Right-handed Karun, who was retained by the franchise, made the most of an early reprieve to guide the run-chase. Mangalore won in 18.1 overs, scoring 118/3. Pawan Deshpande hit the winning runs, remaining unbeaten on 24. Ganesh Satish made 27 (23 balls, 2x4).

 

Captain Rohit Sabharwal, who partnered Nair at the top, scored 11. He too was dropped early in his innings. Rockstars’ fielders dropped both openers inside the first four overs. Dhruv Sharma was the unlucky bowler on both occasions.

After the match, Rockstars captain Sudeep said they were 30 to 40 runs short. "This side went very easy on us. It was too low a total. We gave a good fight. With 30-40 runs more, we could have had a decent competition," Sudeep said.

"We realised that we are not that bad (to compete with professionals). Need to be little disciplined in batting and bowling. We will get back. We gave our best today," he added.
Winning captain Rohit said: "We did well. They really played well. We cannot take any game lightly. We chased it comfortably. We will do well as a team as the tournament progresses."

Courtesy: ThatsCricket