Mumbai defeats Uttarakhand

Rohit Sharma suffered a golden duck but Mumbai had enough firepower in its arsenal to quell the Uttarakhand challenge by 51 runs in a Group C match of the Vijay Hazare Trophy, on Friday. Batting first, Mumbai scored a healthy 331 for seven with useful contributions from keeper-batter Hardik Tamore (93 not out off 82 balls), Sarfaraz Khan (55 off 49 balls) and Musheer Khan (55 off 56 balls).

Later, Musheer (2/57) also did his bit with the ball, snaring a couple of wickets as Uttarakhand managed 280 for 9 in the end largely due to left-handed opener Yuvraj Choudhary’s run-a-ball 96. Onkar Tarmale, a surprise pick by Sunrisers Hyderabad, on List A debut picked 2 for 40 and seemed steady third seamer. The 5000 odd crowd was in for a disappointing day as their hero Rohit was dismissed off the very first delivery he faced.

Lanky medium fast bowler Devendra Bora (3/74) scalped the most memorable victim of his career when he dug one short and the former India skipper instinctively went for a pull shot. Jagmohan Nagarkoti stationed at deep fine leg juggled before taking it on second attempt. While Rohit left even before crowd had gathered in full steam, none of the 6000 to 7000 odd left the ground waiting for their man’s fielding session.

Rohit took a sharp catch at first slip off Shardul Thakur to dismiss opener Kamal Singh. The crowd in a mood for a bit more started chants of ‘Ek Do, Rohit ko bowling do’ but skipper Thakur didn’t pay heed to their demand. During the 49th over when Mumbai had sealed the game, Tushar Deshpande in fact asked his senior colleague if he would like to roll his arm over but he refused.

Earlier, when Mumbai batted, the Khan brothers Sarfaraz and Musheer added 107 runs for the third wicket to lay the platform for a big total. While Sarfaraz mainly hit shots square of the wicket including a big six off left arm spinner Mayank Mishra, his younger brother Musheer played a lot within the ‘V’ with some straight hit over seamer’s head.

Both were guilty of throwing away starts. Tamore then took charge as he ran well between the wickets and also used his feet against the two left-arm spinners Mishra and J Suchith, hitting them for a six each. One was an inside out lofted drive over extra cover while the other was hit wide off long on. His stand of 95 in 10.5.

Overs with Mumbai’s forever crisis man Shams Mulani (48 off 35 balls) proved to be decisive even though he missed out on what would have been a well deserved ton. In another Group C match, Maharashtra defeated Sikkim by eight wickets in a lop-sided contest. Sent in to bat, Sikkim were bundled out for 150 in 40.2 overs, with Kranthi Kumar top-scoring with a 39-ball 40. Maharashtra’s bowlers dominated the proc-eedings, with Rajvardhan Hangargekar returning figures of 4 for 21 and Ramakrishna Ghosh claiming 3 for 22.

In reply, Maharashtra romped home in just 18 overs, riding on a 70-run opening stand between Prithvi Shaw (51) and Arshin Kulkarni (40). Skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad then slammed an unbeaten 38 off 13 balls to seal the chase. At the Anantam Ground, Harnoor Singh and Anmolpreet Singh struck commanding centuries as Punjab thrashed Chhattisgarh by nine wickets.

Asked to bat, Chhattisgarh were dismissed for 253 in 48.4 overs, with Amandeep Khare (70) and Mayank Verma (64) registering half-centuries. In response, opener Harnoor (115 not out) and Anmolpreet (105 not out) made light work of the chase, adding an unbroken 184-run partnership off 178 balls as Punjab overhauled the target in 42.1 overs. Skipper Deepraj Gaonkar’s all-round show scripts Goa win

At the Jaipuria Vidyalaya Ground, skipper Deepraj Gaonkar produced a superb all-round performance to steer Goa to a narrow eight-run win over Himachal Pradesh in a thrilling contest. Gaonkar first struck a vital 71 and then claimed five wickets to emerge as the standout performer. Goa posted 285 for nine, built around Lalit Yadav’s 104 and Gaonkar’s knock. Himachal Pradesh responded strongly, led by Pukhraj Mann’s blistering 126, but a lack of support from the other end proved costly as they were bowled out for 277 in 49.3 overs.

Brief Scores:

Mumbai: 331 for 7 in 50 overs (Hardik Tamore 93, Sarfaraz Khan 55, Musheer Khan 55; Devendra Bora 3/74).

Uttarakhand: 280/9 in 50 overs (Yuvraj Choudhary 96; Onkar Tarmale 2/40).

Goa: 285 for 9 in 50 overs. (Lalit Yadav 104, Deepraj Gaonkar 71; Rohit Kumar 5/55)

Himachal Pradesh: 277 all out (Pukhraj Mann 126; Deepraj Gaonkar 5/50).

Sikkim 150 all out in 40.2 overs (Kranthi Kumar 40; Rajvardhan Hangargekar 4/21, Ramakrishna Ghosh 3/22)

Maharashtra 153 for 2 in 18 overs (Prithvi Shaw 51).

Chhattisgarh: 253 all out in 48.4 overs (Amandeep Khare 70, Mayank Verma 64; Krish Bhagat 3/33)

Punjab: 254 for 1 in 42.1 overs. (Harnoor Singh 115 not out, Anmolpreet Singh 105 not out). Mumbai’s Rohit Sharma celebrating with Sarfaraz Khan and Musheer Khan after taking the catch of Uttarakhand’s Kamal Singh during a Vijay Hazare Trophy 2025-26 cricket match between Mumbai and Uttarakhand at Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur Rajasthan.

Raghuvanshi rushed to hospital

Jaipur: Mumbai opener Angkrish Raghuvanshi was rushed to hospital on Friday after a heavy fall while attempting a difficult catch left him with an injury just below the neck and a concussion during his team’s Vijay Hazare Trophy match against Uttarakhand.

The 21-year-old has since been discharged and returned to the team hotel after scans revealed nothing serious. The incident occurred in the 30th over, bowled by off-spinner Tanush Kotian. Right-handed batter Saurabh Rawat attempted a slog-sweep and Raghuvanshi, stationed at deep mid-wicket, sprinted in towards mid-wicket to get hold of the top edge.

However, his valiant one-handed effort didn’t yield the desired result but in the process he had a nasty fall and his head hit the ground, resulting in a concussion. Raghuvanshi got back on his haunches for a few seconds but then lay on the ground, prompting Mumbai’s physio to rush to the field. Once they understood that he was unable to get back on his feet, a stretcher was called and the waiting ambulance took him to the nearest SDMH Hospital.