A sensational unbeaten 97 off 49 balls by wicket-keeper batter Saurabh Rawat saw the Haridwar Spring Elmas snatch victory from the jaws of defeat in the opening fixture of the Patanjali Uttarakhand Premier League 2024. The Spring Elmas shocked the Dehradun Warriors by four wickets at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Dehradun on Sunday, September 15.
Inserted to bat first, the Warriors posted a competitive total of 176/7 with skipper Aditya Tare top-scoring with an unbeaten 73 off 41 deliveries. In response, a tight opening spell by Satyam Baaliyan and Deepak Kumar saw them concede just 11 runs off the first three overs. The pressure eventually told on the Spring Elmas as Deepak dismissed skipper Ravikumar Samarth (3 off 7) before Kunal Veer Singh (6 off 4) was sent packing soon after he struck a maximum.
Abhay Negi (4/30) was then introduced into the attack and in what was an impressive display of fast-bowling coupled with movement, he broke the back of the Spring Elmas’ batting lineup. Having first removed Daksh Awana for a 15-ball 7, he induced a false drive off Himanshu Sony, who picked out Dikshanshu Negi at short third man. 24/4 soon became 40/5 a little after the powerplay and the Spring Elmas found themselves in disarray.
With nothing to lose, Saurabh launched a counter-attack as a flurry of boundaries followed. Saurav Chauhan (26 off 28) played second fiddle as the duo raised a partnership of 81 runs for the sixth wicket to put the chase back on track. Abhay then returned to snap up his fourth wicket in the form of Chauhan and even as the asking rate shot up, Saurabh continued to pulverize the bowlers at the death. Girish Rauturi’s unbeaten 7-ball 19 played a pivotal role in bringing the equation down to ten runs required off the last over, following which Saurabh sealed the deal with back-to-back sixes.
Earlier, the Warriors were asked to bat first and were kept in check by left-arm seamer Prashant Bhatti’s opening strike as he removed Vaibhav Bhatt for a three-ball duck in the first over. Rauturi (3/31) then joined the party with Aanjaneya Suryavanshi nicking off for a similar score but left-handed opener Sanskar Rawat (37 off 21) had other ideas. Sanskar, who struck the first ball of UPL 2024 for a boundary, unleashed some crisp strokes right out of the textbook to cast himself as a player to keep an eye on.
The Warriors raced past 50 in the powerplay but Samarth smartly changed the pace of the game. He summoned left-arm spinner Harman Singh, who didn’t disappoint as he got Rawat miscuing one into the hands of the Spring Elmas skipper. Rauturi then landed two more blows as the Warriors were in a spot of bother at 68/4 and then 117/6. But Tare took matters into his own hands, unleashing a masterful half-century as he paced his innings beautifully after taking his time.
He found the fence at will and displayed outstanding acceleration to register the first fifty of the tournament. With four fours and five sixes, he remained unbeaten on 73 as the Warriors raced past 170 even as it didn’t seem likely at one stage. It looked like 176 would prove to be enough for a good part of their defense before Saurabh came up with other ideas.
The evening was marked by a glitzy opening ceremony that flagged off the inaugural Patanjali UPL 2024. Singer B Praak, actor Sonu Sood and singer-turned-politician Manoj Tiwari graced the occasion with their presence, as did the honorable Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, Shri Pushkar Singh Dhami.
Scores: Dehradun Warriors 176/7 in 20 overs (Sanskar Rawat 37 off 21, Aditya Tare 76* off 41, Girish Rauturi 3/31) lost to Haridwar Spring Elmas 179/6 in 19.2 overs (Saurabh Rawat 97* off 49, Saurav Chauhan 26 off 28, Abhay Negi 4/30) by four wickets.
