Mumbai beats Chattisgarh in Vijay Hazare Trophy
Skipper Shardul Thakur ticked all the boxes, right from winning the toss to blowing the Chhattisgarh top order with a match-winning four-wicket burst, as Mumbai cruised to a nine-wicket victory to complete a group stage hat-trick in the Vijay Hazare Trophy on Monday. At the Jaipuria Vidyalaya ground, Shardul won the toss and used the early morning nip to good effect to reduce Chhattisgarh to 10 for 4 inside the first five overs.
Chhattisgarh never recovered from the blow and were skittled out for 142 in 38.1 overs. While Shardul wreaked havoc in first half an hour, it was left-arm spinner Shams Mulani (5/31) who demolished the latter half of the Chhattisgarh batting by bowling quick and stump-to-stump line. The last six wickets tumbled for 27 runs.
The chase was a cakewalk as Angkrish Raghuvanshi (68 n.O. Off 66 balls) along with veteran Siddhesh Lad (48 n.O. Off 42 balls) added 102 runs for the unbroken second wicket to wrap it up in 24 overs. Mumbai, with 12 points, consolidated their position on top of Group C. The day belonged to skipper Shardul (4/13 in 5 overs). He got into the act with the very second ball with right-handed opener Ayush Tiwary edging one to Sarfaraz Khan in the slips.
Off the last ball of the opening over, one-drop Mayank Verma (3) was clean bowled. In his next two overs, Sarfaraz again got into the act with two regulation slip takes off away-going deliveries. Skipper Amandeep Khare (63) and all-rounder Ajay Mandal (46) did show the stomach for a fight with a 105-run fifth-wicket stand.
However, once Mandal was snuffed out by Mulani, the remaining wickets fell in a jiffy. Chasing the total, Raghuvanshi, the young KKR star, who batted with a bandage patch on the side of his neck, looked in good touch, hitting six fours and two sixes and got a lot of guidance from senior pro Lad, who also seemed to be in good nick. “All thanks to our physio Mr Suresh who helped me a lot; had a bad fall but I feel much better now,” Raghuvanshi told reporters after the end of the game, referring to his hospitalisation after an on-field injury in the last game against Uttarakhand.
On the match front, he felt that while his skipper exploited the early help from the surface, it became a “batting paradise” later on. The youngster, who is a protege of KKR head coach Abhishek Nayar, also spoke about his experience of batting for a considerable time with a stalwart like Rohit Sharma.
“Out of 141-run stand (earlier game), I got 40. Just taking singles and giving him (Rohit) strike and watching him from the other end, it felt like a movie,” Raghuvanshi’s broad grin said it all. On a personal front, he is trying to upskill himself, adding wicket-keeping to his repertoire with a growing trend of utility players getting preference.
“I am really enjoying keeping. It is challenging but it makes you feel that you are always in the game,” the U19 World Cup winner said. So, are we looking at KKR’s new wicketkeeper during the 2026 season? “That you will find out in due time,” he smiled while signing off.
Pukhraj Mann shines in HP win
At the Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Pukhraj Mann slammed a fine 110 as Himachal Pradesh defeated Maharashtra by seven runs. Ramakrishna Ghosh returned sensational figures of seven for 42, but Himachal Pradesh still managed to post 271 all out in 49.4 overs, riding on Mann’s innings, which was studded with nine fours and three sixes.
In reply, Ankit Bawne (97) kept Maharashtra in the hunt, but his dismissal in the 48th over derailed the chase as they fell short, being bundled out for 264 in 50 overs. Rohit Kumar (2/47), Aryaman Dhaliwal and Mridul Surroch (2/36) were among the wickets.
Lalit Yadav ensures Goa’s unbeaten run Lalit Yadav smashed an unbeaten 131 off 111 balls as Goa secured a 62-run win over Sikkim to continue their unbeaten run. Yadav struck 14 boundaries during his knock to power Goa to 309 for 8, a total that proved more than sufficient as Sikkim could manage only 247 for 7 in 50 overs.
Vasuki Koushik (3/34) was impressive with the ball, while Darshan Misal (1/63) also chipped in with a wicket. For Sikkim, Amit Rajera (50) and Gurinder Singh (52 not out) hit half-centuries, but their efforts fell short. Kunal Chandela’s exploits in Uttarakhand’s first win Skipper Kunal Chandela blasted 118 to guide Uttarakhand to their first win of the tournament, a five-wicket victory over Punjab.
Punjab posted 269 for eight, riding on fifties from Salil Arora (65) and Krish Bhagat (51) after skipper and India opener Abhishek Sharma failed to convert his start, making 30 off 26 balls. Uttarakhand overhauled the target, reaching 270 for five in 47.4 overs, courtesy Chandela’s captain’s knock.
Brief Scores:
Chhattisgarh 142 in 38.1 overs (Amandeep Khare 63, Shardul Thakur 4/13, Shams Mulani 5/31) lost to Mumbai 144/1 in 24 overs (Angkrish Raghuvanshi 66 not out, Siddhesh Lad 48 not out).
Punjab 269 for 8 in 50 overs (Salil Arora 65, Krish Bhagat 51; Mayank Mishra 2/36) lost to Uttarakhand 270 for 5 in 47.4 overs (Kunal Chandela 118; Abhishek Sharma 2/39).
Goa 309 for 8 in 50 overs (Lalit Yadav 131 not out; Gurinder Singh 2/51) beat Sikkim 247 for 7 in 50 overs (Amit Rajera 50, Gurinder Singh 52 not out; Vasuki Koushik 3/34).
