Kanpur: Defending champions Kashi Rudras will be looking for a change of fortunes as the UP T20 League reaches Kanpur for the second leg of the tournament. Rudras will take on Noida Kings at Green Park Stadium on Friday.Interestingly, Kashi Rudras had also featured in the inaugural match of the first phase of the tournament, where they suffered a one-wicket defeat against Meerut Mavericks in a thrilling last-ball finish.Kashi Rudras are currently fifth in the six-team table with six points from eight matches. They have won three and lost five matches. They need to win both their remaining matches in the Kanpur leg to keep their hopes of qualifying for the playoffs alive.Meanwhile, Meerut Mavericks are comfortably placed at the top with 14 points from seven matches and remain unbeaten in the tournament. Lucknow Falcons and Noida Kings are second and third, respectively, with eight points each from seven matches. Lucknow have a superior net run rate of +0.472 compared with Noida’s +0.132.Gorakhpur Lions are fourth with six points from eight matches, while Kanpur Super Stars are at the bottom with two points from seven matches after managing just one victory.In the second leg, each team will play two matches before the qualifiers and final.Green Park Stadium is ready to host the second leg, although intermittent rain has created some hurdles during the final preparations. The city received around 84 mm of rain on Wednesday, leaving the outfield soft.Curator Bhupendra Singh said the ground was ready for the match. He added that even in the event of moderate to heavy rain, play could resume within about 45 minutes, as arrangements had been made to prevent waterlogging inside the playing boundary.
