Novus Royals Purulia announced themselves in style on the opening night of the Bengal T20 League Season 3, edging past defending champions Adamas Howrah Warriors by four runs in a tense contest at Eden Gardens on Friday.
Asked to bat first in the tournament curtain-raiser, the debutants put together a competitive 154 for 6 in their allotted 20 overs.
Yuvraj Deepak Keswani was the star for the Royals, carrying his bat to an unbeaten 54 off 38 balls and hitting important boundaries in the closing stages to keep the scoreboard ticking. Ankur Paul provided a solid platform with 33 off 25 deliveries, while Pradipta Pramanik's late blitz - a brisk 30 from just 18 balls - gave the total much-needed momentum.
Adamas Howrah Warriors found a spark through
Kanishk Seth, whose disciplined bowling produced figures of 3 for 23 and regularly troubled the Royals' batters. But when it came to chasing the target, the Warriors fell agonisingly short. Ankit Chatterjee top-scored for the champions with a fighting 43 off 31 balls, keeping them in the hunt for much of the innings.
In the end Novus Royals' bowlers held firm. Pritam Chakraborty, Pradipta Pramanik and Harsh Dev Gautam each picked up two wickets as the Warriors were bundled out for 150 in 19.5 overs, handing the newcomers a memorable four-run victory.
"It's a great feeling to start our journey with a win. As a new team, many of us are playing together for the first time, so getting off to a winning start is very satisfying. The wicket wasn't the easiest to bat on in the first innings, but we managed to put up a competitive total and our bowlers did an excellent job defending it. This is just the first game, but there are plenty of positives for us to take forward and build on as the tournament progresses," said star player of the match Yuvraj Deepak Keswani.
The result makes for a dream debut for Novus Royals Purulia in the inaugural match of the season, while Adamas Howrah Warriors will rue a rare slip as their title defence begins on a disappointing note.
