KPL 2015 Final: Bijapur Bulls v Hubli Tigers; Review

Published - 20 Sept 2015, 21:41 IST | Updated - 20 Sept 2015, 21:41 IST

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KPL 2015 Final: Bijapur Bulls v Hubli Tigers; Review: Mysuru, Sept 20: Bijapur Bulls crowned themselves champions of the Karbonn Smart KPL 2015 with a stupendous seven wicket victory over Hubli Tigers in the final here at the SDNR Wadiyar Groundon Sunday.

Everything went according to script for the Bulls right from winning the toss to posting the victory.

Inserting the opposition in, the Bulls saw young medium pacer Vyshak Vijay Kumar ripping out Hubli’s top scorer Mohammad Taha cheaply in the second over of the match. He also accounted for skipper Kunal Kapoor to further dent the Tigers’ chances.

The Tigers did not recover from those two blows as leg spinner KC Cariappa got into the act to claim three wickets and also the Purple Cap.

Opening batsman KB Pawan fought agrim battle making a patient 32 but the other batsmen just failed to get going,the team managing a mere 114 from their 20 overs.

The Bulls’ reply began sedately with R Samarth (27) and Rajoo Bhatkal (6) playing cautiously. The advent of Robin Uthappa (38 N.O) did not bring the fireworks that was expected to come along and the team were trudging along cautiously as the Hubli bowlers tried their best to claim wickets.

However, the fall of Suneel Raju with the team score at 60 in the 12^th over, saw skipper B Akhil walking in. Akhil got into overdrive quickly to smash four towering sixes and one four to hasten his team’s crowing moment with a 19-ball unbeaten 36.

Uthappa and Akhil were un-separated when victory came for Kiran Kattimani and his team in the 18^th over.

With the victory, Bijapur Bulls lifted the Trophy and rupees 10 lakhs as the winner’s cheque.

Robin Uthappa was adjudged the man of the series and was handed the keys to a brand new Maruti Alto car while Vyshak clinched the man of the match award for his three wickets in the final, a cheque for rupees ten thousand.

Man of the Series Robin Uthappa said, “It was very gratifying to be a part of this phenomenal team. We had experienced hands who have been a part of the Karnataka team and youngsters as well who were all motivated to win. The young stersheld their own and performed to make every game count. I had earlier said that Karnataka cricket is in great hands for the next 5 years and I stand by that.As seen, we have talent that can be nurtured and groomed for the future.

The KPL is a great tournament which gives the boys experience of playing in front of crowds and pressure with the cream of the State.”

Speaking about his performance in the League, he said, “Winning the KPL is definitely a tick in the box and at the same time I have set goals for myself. I have set my sights on playing Test cricket and I will put in the work required and chase that dream.”

Captain of Bijapur Bulls, B Akhil said, “I wasn’t sure of playing the KPL initially as I had retired from First Class cricket more than two years ago but my family convinced me to play. We have a fantastic team with a great set of boys. It was a team effort through the tournament and bowlers like Cariappa, Appananna, A Mithun shone and amongst the batsman Robin, Samarth, Rajoo, Suneel were great and Nidhish also chipped in. We backed each other and won the tournament.”

“I am playing the KPL for the second year and for the second year I am with the title winning team (last year with Mysore Warriors). I am super happy and it feels very special to be man of the match in a game that was very crucial for my team. I thank for me in believing in me and all credit goes to team CEO and coach Sudhindra Shinde”, said Vyshak.

The Orange Cap rested with Sadiq Kirmani who totaled 338 runs from seven matches.