Star players Karun Nair, Prasidh Krishna, and Mayank Agarwal were among the notable retentions announced today as the Shriram Capital Maharaja Trophy KSCA T20, powered by FanCode, gears up for its much-anticipated fourth edition. The tournament is scheduled to be held from August 11 to 27 at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.The two-week competition will be played as a closed-door event this year, with no public entry allowed at the venue.
The tournament will see six franchises in action – defending champions Mysore Warriors, last year’s runners-up Bengaluru Blasters, Hubli Tigers, Gulbarga Mystics, Shivamogga Lions, and Mangaluru Dragons.
Karun Nair will once again lead the Mysore Warriors after topping the charts in the previous edition with 560 runs. He will be supported by emerging batting talent Karthik SU, who made 372 runs in 12 innings last season, including three fifties. Indian pacer Prasidh Krishna and all-rounder Karthik CA also form part of the defending champions’ core.
Bengaluru Blasters will continue to rely on veteran opener Mayank Agarwal, along with wicketkeeper Suraj Ahuja and all-rounder Shubhang Hegde, who impressed last year with 201 runs and 14 wickets. The return of Naveen MG adds further depth to the squad.Hubli Tigers have retained wicketkeeper-batsman KL Shrijith, who amassed 349 runs in the last season, including a match-winning century. The team’s core also features India U19’s KP Karthikeya, Manvanth Kumar, and KC Cariappa.
Gulbarga Mystics will once again be led by skipper Vyshak Vijaykumar, with their top-order anchored by Smaran R and Luvnith Sisodia, who jointly scored 616 runs last season. The experienced Praveen Dubey continues to add versatility to their lineup.
Shivamogga Lions have retained pacer Vasuki Koushik and wicketkeeper Nihal Ullal, while also banking on slow left-arm spinner Hardik Raj and bowling all-rounder Avinash D for a balanced attack.Mangaluru Dragons have shown confidence in left-arm pacer Abhilash Shetty, and retained promising all-rounders Macneil Noronha and Paras Gurbax Arya, along with batter Lochan Gowda.
The player auction for the tournament will be held on July 15. Each franchise will be required to build a squad of 16 to 18 players, excluding two mandatory catchment-area selections.All matches will be played at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, which features a sub-air drainage system designed to minimise match delays during the monsoon season.(UNI)
