Venkatesh Prasad, Shanta Rangaswamy Launch KSCA Election Manifesto With revival Of KSCA Agenda

YSR One Day Memorial Tournament: With evival of KSCA at the heart of their campaign, former India pacer Venkatesh Prasad, womens cricket legend Shanta Rangaswamy, and former KSCA treasurer Vinay Mruthyunjaya unveiled their manifesto for the forthcoming Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) elections, likely to be held between the end of September and November this year. The trio placed restoring the glory of M. Chinnaswamy Stadium and empowering Karnataka cricket as their top priorities. Addressing a press conference on Wednesday, Prasad vowed to bring back international cricket to the iconic venue while developing a vibrant, inclusive cricket ecosystem across the state. Our endeavour will be to rebuild and strengthen relations with the Government and civic authorities to restore M. Chinnaswamy Stadium as Indias premier cricket venue. Bring international cricket matches back to this historic ground, reinstating its stature on the global stage, said Prasad. Prasad, who earlier served as KSCA vice-president during Anil Kumble and Javagal Srinaths administration (20132016), has joined hands with Vinay, the associations former treasurer. Pointing out the current administrative vacuum, he stressed that elections should not be delayed further. He noted, Since KSCA has been functioning without an elected secretary and treasurer for close to two months now, the elections must be conducted at the earliest. If elected, their panel has promised to honour Karnatakas cricketing icons in a symbolic yet meaningful way. The Pavilion End of the Chinnaswamy Stadium would be named after Anil Kumble, while the Northern End would be dedicated to Rahul Dravid. Stands would also be named in honour of Shanta Rangaswamy and former BCCI Secretary C. Nagaraj. A major plank of their manifesto is a comprehensive stadium safety audit to address recent concerns, with remedial measures implemented to transform Chinnaswamy into a world-class, ultra-modern Smart Stadium. Plans include digital ticketing, advanced crowd management, cutting-edge fan experience technology, and state-of-the-art facilities. The manifesto also proposes the establishment of a world-class cricket museum inspired by Lords, showcasing Karnatakas rich cricket heritage through interactive exhibits, digital archives, and virtual reality experiences of historic moments. Alongside, official merchandise and memorabilia would be launched to engage fans. Speaking about cricketing development across levels, Vinay underlined the panels vision: Our team will also work towards organising structured tournaments at all age levels, ensuring timely completion before selection cycles. Revive the prestigious YSR One Day Memorial Tournament and Group II competitions. Restore the grandeur and competitive quality of the Maharaja T20 Tournament. Facilitate reciprocal overseas tours for elite cricketers across all age groups, and most importantly, the recognition of former state cricketers and benefits for their families. Womens cricket, a critical focus area, was outlined by Shanta Rangaswamy. We will launch structured leagues equivalent to mens tournaments for all age brackets and introduce inter-school and inter-college cricket tournaments to nurture young female talent. Strategic planning to elevate the stature and quality of the Maharani T20 Tournament and enable reciprocal overseas tours for elite women cricketers is also part of our manifesto, she said. The panels infrastructure roadmap covers major projects across Karnataka. Pending work at Alur, Belgaum, and Hubli will be completed, while new turf grounds with signature pavilions are planned for Hassan, Davangere, Raichur, and Gadag. There are also ambitious proposals for building a world-class stadium in Mysuru and expanding facilities in other key centres. On the developmental front, the manifesto details a revival of the Karnataka Cricket Academy, to be led by a legendary former cricketer. It proposes involving former state players as mentors and coaches, setting up zonal academies across Karnataka, and providing scholarships for underprivileged cricketers. Specialised training programmes for umpires, scorers, physiotherapists, analysts, and coaches, along with a dedicated counselling cell for young players, also form part of the academy vision. The manifesto emphasises zonal cricket decentralisation, promising to host most BCCI matches at zonal centres, expand turf pitches across districts, and encourage structured cricket for all age groups. Importantly, equal emphasis will be placed on promoting womens cricket development in all districts. Specialised training programmes for umpires, scorers, physiotherapists, analysts, and coaches, along with a dedicated counselling cell for young players, also form part of the academy vision. Also Read: LIVE Cricket Score The roadmap sets out clear timelines. Immediate initiatives include addressing the Chinnaswamy Stadium stampede inquiry, implementing judicial and government-recommended safety measures, securing permissions to resume hosting matches, and restarting grassroots tournaments with definitive schedules. Article Source: IANS

Maharaja Trophy: Gulbarga Mystics Tame Hubli Tigers With Four-wicket Win

Maharaja Trophy KSCA T20: Gulbarga Mystics snatched a thrilling four-wicket win over Hubli Tigers in an exciting run-chase to keep their hopes alive in Maharaja Trophy KSCA T20, here at the SDNR Wadiyar stadium. It was valuable knocks by Smaran Ravichandran (52 off 39 balls) and Prajwal Pavan (37 off 28 balls) that aided a successful chase with two balls to spare while Shashi Kumar K and Lavish Kaushal bagged two wickets each to restrict the Tigers total to 158 in 20 overs. Although Mystics' run chase began on shaky ground with Tigers' spinner Ritesh Bhatkal striking early in the opening over dismissing Nikin Jose to just four runs. Siddharth KV was next to follow when Padikkal caught a stunning catch off Cariappa's bowling. With the score reading 12 for 2 in 2.1 overs, Mystics were left wanting by the Tigers bowlers. Luvnith Sisodia too went in the same over, once again it was a splendid catch by Samarth Nagaraj at square leg. This effort won him the Catch of the Match, rightfully so, for picking the catch just inches from the ground. Losing three wickets with just 15 runs on board was not the kind of start Mystics imagined but No.4 batter Smaran Ravichandran was the hero who saved the innings with a brave 52 off 39 balls with three sixes and one four. He was well assisted by Prajwal Pavan who scored a steady 37 off 28 balls with two fours and three sixes. The pair put on a crucial 71-run partnership for the fourth wicket. It was eventually Samarth Nagaraj who broke the partnership when he picked up Pavan's wicket in the 11th over while Smaran was dismissed by Yash Raj Punja in the 15th over when he was caught by Manavath Kumar. It didn't help Tigers' cause when a flurry of catches were dropped in the death overs, allowing Bangalore Mohith and Praveen Dubey to make light of the chase with the duo scoring 41 runs off 27 balls. Mohith's unbeaten 26 off 18 balls studded with two sixes was important to increase the run rate while Dubey scored 19 runs. Though Dubey was bowled by Punja in the 19th over, Vyshak Vijaykumar scored the winning runs, adding two points from this match. Earlier in the match, Gulbarga Mystics' decision to bowl first after winning the toss proved to be vital as they successfully restricted Hubli Tigers to a meager 158 for eight wickets in 20 overs. They bagged three big wickets in the power play, putting the Tigers under some real pressure early in the innings. First to march was Prakhar Chaturvedi dismissed by Prithviraj Shekhawat for eight runs when he was caught by Prajwal Pavan. A poor call between Mohd. Taha and Devdutt Padikkal led to the skipper's wicket when he was only on seven runs. Staring at 37 for two in just five overs, the responsibility mounted on Taha who has had an outstanding start of the season with two hundreds to his name was rather unimpressive tonight as he was dismissed cheaply for 17 runs by Shashi Kumar. He was caught by Siddharth, leaving the Tigers squandering at 42-3 in 5.6 overs. After a brief struggle to stitch together a partnership with Vijaya Basavaraj Raj being scalped for just 9 runs by Shashi Kumar in an exciting hit wicket, Krishnan Shrijith was the one to save the blushes for Tigers as he built a strong knock of 52 runs off 45 balls with able support from No.6 batter-wicketkeeper Shivkumar Rakshith. While Shrijith's innings was studded with four boundaries and two sixes, Rakshith was quick in his approach with 36 runs off just 22 balls with four boundaries and two sixes. Their 56-run partnership came to an end in the 15th over when Monish Reddy bagged Rakshith's wicket caught by Luvnith Sisodia. But with Shrijith still at the crease, Tigers when on to add another 39 runs with Manvath Kumar L partnering with Shrijith, who fought bravely after being unwell past few days and missing out as many as three games. Manvath scored 10 runs to his name before being run out. His was the last wicket to fall in the Tigers innings, as Shrijith and Ritesh Bhatkal both lost their wicket to Lavish Kaushal earlier in the 19th over. The total on board eventually proved a little to less to defend. Brief scores- Manvath scored 10 runs to his name before being run out. His was the last wicket to fall in the Tigers innings, as Shrijith and Ritesh Bhatkal both lost their wicket to Lavish Kaushal earlier in the 19th over. The total on board eventually proved a little to less to defend. Also Read: LIVE Cricket Score Gulbarga Mystics 159/6 in 19.4 overs (Smaran R 52 runs off 39 balls, Prajwal Pavan 37 runs off 28 balls, Mohit BA 26* runs off 18 balls, KC Cariappa 2/28, Yashraj Punja 2/33) Article Source: IANS

Rahul Dravid's Son Goes Unsold, Padikkal Gets Top Bid at KSCA T20 Auction

Devdutt was bought by Hubli Tigers ahead of the tournament which is set to take place between August 11 and 27 behind closed doors

India batter Devdutt Padikkal attracts top bid at auction ahead of KSCA T20

Devdutt Padikkal secured the top bid at Rs 13.20 lakh in the Maharaja Trophy KSCA T20 auction. Hubli Tigers acquired him. Abhinav Manohar and Manish Pandey followed with Rs 12.20 lakh bids each. Shivamogga Lions spent big on Vidwath Kaverappa. Bengaluru Blasters picked Vidyadhar Patil. Aneeshwar Gautam went to Shivamogga Lions. Mangaluru Dragons secured Shreyas Gopal.

PVR Inox Plans To Add 200 Screens In Two Years: ED Sanjeev Kumar Bijli

Out of the 100 screens, 40 screens are in South India, including Hyderabad, Bangalore and Hubli.

Nidec expands India footprint with launch of Orchard hub manufacturing campus in Hubli, Karnataka

Nidec Corporation launched Orchard Hub, a manufacturing campus, in Karnataka. The facility will produce generators, EV components and energy storage systems. Production is set to begin later this year. The company invested $55 million in the project. Orchard Hub is expected to generate over 2,000 jobs. Nidec aims to make the campus carbon-neutral by 2028.