A late charge from captain Salman Nizar helped Kerala defeat Goa by 4 wickets to get their first win of the 41st All India Uttarakhand Gold Cup Cricket Tournament in Dehradun on Monday.

Nizar hit Deepraj Gaonkar for consecutive sixes and a boundary in the penultimate over when Kerala needed 23 to win. The left-hander finished unbeaten on 24 off 14 as Kerala won with three balls to spare.

Chasing a target of 138, Kerala were in trouble at 34/4 before Akshay Manohar and Shoun Roger (28) forged a 42-run stand. When Roger was castled by Gaonkar, Kerala needed to go at about 12 runs an over.

akshay-manohar-kca
Akshay Manohar. Photo: KCA

Manohar eased the pressure with a six off Mohit Redkar, and another off Heramb Parab, but fell in the penultimate over, trying to go across against Gaonkar. But Nizar turned the tables with consecutive sixes and a four against the right-arm pacer. Kerala had lost their tournament opener to Himachal Pradesh by 6 wickets.

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Brief scores: Goa 137/9 in 20 overs (Ishaan Gadekar 48, Sijomon 4/28, Shoun Roger 2/18, Fanoos Faiz 2/26) lost to Kerala 139/6 in 19.3 overs (Akshay Manohar 46, Shoun 28, Salman Nizar 24 not out, Heramb Parab 2/38, Deepraj Gaonkar 2/40)

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