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Lyca Kovai Kings captain Shahrukh Khan smashed the fastest 50 (17 balls) of the Tamil Nadu Premier League (TNPL) 2024. He did so against Salem Spartans in the 25th game of the tournament on Saturday, July 27, at NPR College Ground in Dindigul.
Khan came to bat in the 13th over. The Kovai Kings captain smashed two consecutive sixes in the 15th over to get things going. Chasing a target of 172, the Kings needed 38 off the last five overs.
Shahrukh went berserk in the 17th over as he hit Harish Kumar for a boundary and two maximums. The right-handed batter brought up his fifty in 17 balls, with the Kovai Kings only needing six to win off the last 16 balls with five wickets remaining.
Here’s the video of Shahrukh’s innings:
However, no one would have imagined what was coming next. The Kovai Kings lost three wickets in the next four balls, including Shahrukh Khan (50 off 18 balls). All of a sudden, Khan’s side was 168/8 in 18 overs. Salem Spartans bowler Aushik Srinivas only conceded one run in the penultimate over, with the Kings needing three more to win off the last.
Sunny Sandhu came to bowl the last over. On the first delivery, Kovai Kings batter V Yudheeswaran was found short of the crease when they tried to take a double.
Sandhu then bowled three dots, while the fifth ball resulted in a single as the scores leveled. On the last delivery, M Siddharth got an outside edge as the ball went to four at third-man, with the Kings winning the thriller of a game.
Harish Kumar shines for Salem Spartans in the first innings of the TNPL game
After being asked to bat first, Salem Spartans openers Vishal Vaidhya (36) and S Abhishek (20) stitched a 61-run partnership in the TNPL. Rajendran Vivek played a decent hand of 43 runs off 30 balls. Towards the end, Harish Kumar was brilliant; the right-handed batter remained unbeaten on 42 off 19 balls, smashing two fours and five sixes.
Salem Spartans finished at 171/4 in their 20 overs. In response, Shahrukh Khan was brilliant for the Lyca Kovai Kings. Salem Spartans bowlers came back brilliantly in the end, but it wasn’t meant to be as Kovai Kings won the TNPL game by one wicket.
