Rhinos chase down 198; Bulls dominate in rain‑shortened match on CCPL Day 3

RAIPUR: Day three of the second edition of the Chhattisgarh Cricket Premier League (CCPL) featured two thrilling matches on Sunday, with Raipur Rhinos and Bilaspur Bulls emerging victorious. At the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Cricket Stadium in Nava Raipur, Raipur Rhinos defeated Surguja Tigers by eight wickets in a high-scoring chase. After winning the toss and opting to field, Raipur restricted Surguja to 197 for 6 in 20 overs. Shashwat Sharda top-scored with 56 off 41 balls, while Anand Rao smashed a brisk 51 off 27 balls. Captain Ashutosh Singh added a valuable 39. For Raipur Rhinos, Mayank Yadav took two wickets. In response, Raipur chased down the target of 198 with ease, reaching 203 for 2 in 19.4 overs. Despite an early setback, captain Amandeep Khare (82 off 45) and Anuj Tiwari (77 off 56) stitched a record 152-run partnership for the second wicket. Vaibhav Sahu added a quick 32 off 14 balls. Rohan Taank and Swapnil Chaddha claimed a wicket each for Surguja Tigers. Earlier in the day, Bilaspur Bulls edged past Raigarh Lions by three wickets in a rain-affected clash.

After choosing to field first, Bilaspur restricted Raigarh to 157 for 8 in 20 overs. Anurag Sahu scored 55 off 47 balls and Aditya Singh added 44. Bilaspur’s Harsh Rathore and Mohit Raut took two wickets apiece. Due to rain, Bilaspur’s target was revised to 130 in 16 overs under the DLS method. They chased it down in 15.3 overs, losing just three wickets. Ayush Pandey top-scored with 50, while Mohit Raut contributed 35 runs. Ayush Singh Thakur took two wickets for Raigarh. Raut was named Player of the Match for his all-round performance.