Hyderabad Clinches Back-to-Back Buchi Babu Trophy Wins as Goud and Radesh Shine

The TNCA President’s XI put up a determined effort in their match, aiming for a comeback, but Hyderabad’s batters Varun Goud (56 not out) and Rahul Radesh (31 not out) maintained composure to retain the Buchi Babu Invitational Tournament title at the CSK-HPC ground in Chennai on Tuesday.

The match concluded in a draw, with Hyderabad clinching victory based on a first innings lead. This marks their sixth title overall and their second consecutive win. The team first claimed the trophy in 1967 as Hyderabad Blues.

For Hyderabad, the focus was on endurance rather than scoring. Goud and Radesh contributed an unbeaten partnership of 85 runs, crucially occupying 242 deliveries for the sixth wicket. Their prolonged batting stint gradually edged the game away from the TNCA President’s XI, who eventually had to acknowledge Hyderabad’s 178-run lead, as the team finished on 155 for five.

Securing the win was not straightforward. The pitch favored bowlers, prompting the home team to adopt a stump-to-stump line, challenging the batters with nearly every delivery.

P. Vidyuth trapped Aman Rao (19 off 44 balls) leg-before six overs into the day, and shortly after, J. Hemchudeshan bowled out K. Himateja (11 off 27), who had shown potential. The spinners were probing, complemented by pacer H. Trilok Nag’s consistent pressure, which led to the dismissal of Hyderabad captain Rahul Singh, caught behind.

Meanwhile, overnight batter Ravi Teja seemed stable, lasting 87 deliveries before being leg-before to Hemchudeshan. Goud, continuing his impressive tournament form, played simply yet effectively. Alongside Radesh, he frustrated the opposition with solid defence and occasional boundaries.

A brief drizzle during the second session led to an early Tea. Fifteen minutes after play resumed, opposing captain Pradosh Ranjan Paul extended a handshake, resulting in a draw and granting Hyderabad a strong start to their season.

Published on Sep 09, 2025.