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Lucknow | August 14, 2026: Cricket lovers got to see a breath-taking thrill in the very first match of the fourth season of the Uttar Pradesh T20 League. In a sensational match played on Friday at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium, Meerut Mavericks snatched victory from the hands of defending champion Kashi Rudras on the basis of the charismatic performance of all-rounder Yash Garg. Meerut started the season with a bang by winning the match by 1 wicket on the last ball.

After bowling the best spell of 4/19 in the first bowling, Yash Garg also performed miracles with the bat. He scored unbeaten 26 runs in just 14 balls. In the last over, when Meerut needed 19 runs to win and only 1 wicket was left in hand, Garg hit a four and a six on the first two balls. When 7 runs were needed from 2 balls, he hit another sky-high six and wisely scored 1 run on the last ball to give the team a seemingly impossible victory.

Earlier in the evening, a colorful inauguration ceremony was held in the presence of Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, BCCI Vice President Rajeev Shukla, League Chairman Dr. Sanjay Kapoor, former cricketer Suresh Raina and star batsman Abhishek Sharma.

Kashi limited to 118 due to Yash Garg and Zeeshan's spin

After winning the toss, Meerut captain Rinku Singh decided to bowl first. For Kashi Rudras, opener Abhishek Goswami tried to lay a strong foundation by scoring 42 runs in 32 balls. But Yash Garg gave a double blow to Kashi captain Karan Sharma by dismissing him. After this, Sunrisers Hyderabad spinner Zeeshan Ansari (3/19) and fast bowler Vishal Chaudhary (2/13) shook the middle order.
Yash Garg (4/19) also crossed the mark of 50 wickets in his career and completed 51 wickets in the tournament. The entire team of Kashi Rudras was bundled out for 118 runs in 20 overs.

Chase of 119: A breath-taking knockout turn

Meerut Mavericks, who came to chase the small target of 119 runs, also had a very bad start. Vaibhav Chaudhary sent explosive opener Swastik Chikara to the pavilion in the very second over. Meerut was struggling at 47/4 in 10 overs against Kashi's disciplined bowling attack.
After this, captain Rinku Singh (28 runs in 21 balls) and Divyansh Rajput (26 runs in 24 balls) took over the innings by making an important partnership of 36 runs for the 5th wicket. But Karthik Yadav made Kashi's comeback by dismissing Rinku and Sandeep Tomar early.
When 26 runs were needed in the last 18 balls, Kashi's fast bowler Atal Bihari Vipin Rai created a stir by dismissing Rajput and Zeeshan Ansari (0) in two consecutive balls. Vipin Rai (4/23) with this performance became the highest wicket taker in UP T20 history with 54 wickets. It seemed that Kashi had won the match, but Yash Garg's storm in the last over changed the whole situation.

'I had confidence in myself, just wanted to take the match deep': Player of the Match Yash Garg

Yash Garg, who was adjudged Player of the Match for his brilliant all-round performance, said after the match, “I had never dreamed of such a thing, but I was confident that if such a situation came, I would be ready for it. Usually my batting is not good, but I had worked hard for this moment. Talking about his thinking, he said, “I just wanted to take the match till the end. Everyone in our team can bat. The wicket was good and there was dew, so we were confident. There was no option but to play big shots in the last over, it was good that they connected.”
Talking about bowling, Garg said, “I have been playing for 4 years but today I was the most nervous. Getting a wicket on the very first ball boosted my confidence. In the last few years, I had not taken batting seriously, but this time I worked hard. The special thing about our team is that we have two more excellent spinners, with whom I get the advantage of bowling.”

'After seeing that shot of Yash in the last over, I knew that today was his day': Rinku Singh

Meerut Mavericks captain Rinku Singh said after the match, “Starting with a win always boosts the team's morale, especially when the match becomes so exciting. When Yash hit a cover-scoop four in the last over, I told Swastik – 'Brother, today is his day. He has taken 4 wickets, is fielding well, who knows he may win the match with the bat too.' And that's exactly what happened.”
On his captaincy and batting, Rinku said, “Yash is a very hardworking boy, has been with our team for 3 years. I am enjoying captaincy a lot, learning how to use the bowlers properly. On bowling himself, he said laughing – 'The advantage of captaincy is that you can give overs to yourself! There was a left-handed batsman on the field, so I thought I could bowl two overs. However, our batting could have been a little better and we will plan better in the next match. Will land with.”

'The last over took the match away from us, but we will come back stronger': Karan Sharma

Disappointed with the defeat, Kashi Rudras captain Karan Sharma said, “It is definitely a disappointing defeat. It is sad to lose after the kind of effort the team put in, but it is a part of the game. Our bowlers had planned brilliantly and put us in a position to win. Full credit goes to them.”
On where the match went wrong, Karan said, “We lost the match in the last over itself. Till then we were in a very good position. We will work on our mistakes and sit and discuss how to improve in the coming matches.”

Major Match Awards:

• Player of the Match: Yash Garg
• Dependable Bowler of the Match: Yash Garg
• Most Sixes in the Match: Abhishek Goswami
• Most Fours in the Match: Rinku Singh
• Super Striker of the Match: Abhishek Goswami
• Best Catch of the Match: Rituraj Sharma

Upcoming matches (Saturday, August 15):

• Match 2: Noida Kings vs Kanpur Superstars (3:00 PM IST)
• Match 3: Lucknow Falcons vs Gorakhpur Lions (7:30 PM IST)

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