The Meerut Mavericks, captained by Rinku Singh, have experienced a fluctuating performance in the Uttar Pradesh T20 League. While the team began the tournament well, they have struggled to maintain a winning streak. Although their on-field performance typically determines the outcome, an unfortunate twist of events led to an unfair defeat for the team. The situation left Rinku and his team, as well as everyone else, without explanation. The ‘unfairness’ didn’t come from the opposing team or umpires, but from the weather, which changed its mood mid-match, resulting in the loss for Rinku Singh’s Meerut team.
Samer Rizvi’s Strong Innings
In the 16th match of the UP T20 League at Lucknow’s Ekana Stadium on Monday, August 25th, the Meerut Mavericks faced the Kanpur Superstars. Kanpur batted first in the match, scoring 149 runs in their 20 overs. Captain Samer Rizvi top-scored for Kanpur with 78 runs off just 48 balls. Rizvi remained at the crease until the end, successfully leading his team to a competitive score, including 7 fours and 5 sixes. No other batsman managed to make a significant impact.
Weather’s ‘Unfairness’ Towards Meerut
After restricting Kanpur to that score, Rinku and his team likely felt optimistic about their chances of winning. However, the team’s start was not ideal, losing 2 wickets for just 12 runs. This early setback became a problem for them. Meerut took 4 overs to score those 12 runs. After such a slow start, Swastik Chikara accelerated the scoreboard, taking the team to 41 runs in 8 overs.
But it was at this point that the weather intervened. While the weather favored Kanpur throughout their innings, rain started during Meerut’s innings and didn’t stop. Consequently, the match had to be abandoned, and Meerut suffered a 14-run defeat due to the Duckworth-Lewis method. This was their third loss in 6 matches this season. Despite this, the team still holds the second position in the points table.