Pune: Ratnagiri Jets made a below-par score of 160 for 8 look like Mt Everest with a clinical bowling performance and thumped Eagle Nashik Titans by 24 runs to defend their Maharashtra Premier League (MPL) title at the MCA International Stadium here Saturday.
In 2023, Ratnagiri Jets were declared winners after their final against PBG Kolhapur Tuskers was abandoned due to inclement weather.
The telling statistic of Nashik’s innings was Mukesh Chaudhary (50, 35b, 2x4s, 4x6s), the team’s icon player and the premier pacer was the only player to score more than 20 runs. Atharva Kale (15, 18b, 1×6) was the next-best batter for Nashik. Nashik could only put up 136 for 9.
Left-arm spinners choke Nashik
Satyajeet Bachhav (4-1-31-4), who won the purple cap (11 Innings, 26 wickets) found a formidable bowling partner in fellow left-arm spinner Kunal Thorat (4-0-19-2) as Ratnagiri choked Nashik.
Three of Bachhav’s four scalps – Kaushal Tambe, Atharva Kale, and Mukesh Chaudhary – were bowled while Ranjit Nikam (3, 6b) holed out to Divyang Hinganekar. From the other end, Thorat dismissed Arshin Kulkarni and dangerous Dhanraj Shinde (3, 6b) to leave Nashik tottering 79 for 7. It was only Mukesh Chaudhary’s late hitting that spared Nashik from a humiliating defeat.
Chasing 161, all Eagle Nashik Titans needed was a good power play, but they lost the plot in the first six over. Left-arm pacer Divyang Hinganekar bowled his second and innings’ third over a double-wicket maiden. Opener Mandar Bhandari (7, 8b, 1×4) was caught behind on the first ball and Sahil Parikh (0, 2b), the hero of Qualifier 2, was castled two balls later. At the end of the power play, Nashik were 31 for 2.
India U-19 star Arshin Kulkarni (9, 13b, 1×4), who was struggling with an injury and former India U-19 player Kaushal Tambe (9, 17b, 2x4s) could not rotate the strike nor could they clear the ropes and paid the price for it.
Earlier, a 44-run partnership for the fifth wicket between two youngsters – Kiran Chormale (35, 23b, 3x4s, 2×6) and Abhishek Pawar (28, 22b, 3x6s) helped Ratnagi recover from 56 for 4.
Former KKR player Nikhil Naik (36, 25b, 3x4s, 1×6) once again played a cameo he often plays, to guide Ratnagiri to 160 for 8, a score which in turn proved more than enough.
30,000+ crowd enjoy the final
A crowd of over 30,000 packed the stands for the final of the MPL at the MCA International Stadium despite India playing against Bangladesh in the T20 World Cup.
The vocal crowd chanted for their favourite team throughout, and Ratnagiri Jets were a clear fan favourite. As the defending champions cruised towards the title, the decibel levels only grew louder. The famous singer Abhijeet Sawant enthralled the crowd with a performance before the match and during the innings break.
