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Player of the Match
Player of the Match

Delhi, Mumbai make it to semis

Delhi secured a thrilling win over Railways at the Brabourne Stadium to qualify for the semi-final of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. After being asked to bat, Delhi were reeling at 43 for 4 before captain Rajat Bhatia came to the rescue. He turned the tide with a century, making 107 including six fours and eight sixes. In the company of Puneet Mehra, he added 73 for the fifth wicket and then, almost on his own, led the surge at the death, helping Delhi reach a challenging 180 for 6.

In an impressive all-round effort, Bhatia also picked up two wickets. Railways began steadily in their chase but Delhi hit back, reducing them to 91 for 6 at one stage. Karan Sharma, however, led a lower-order revival, making 67 in 35 balls and keeping his team in the hunt. He added 31 with Rajesh Bishnoi, then 56 with Avinash Yadav. Railways were 178 for 7 with Sharma still at the crease on the penultimate ball of the match, needed three more for victory. But he was caught by Pradeep Sangwan off Mithun Manhas and Yadav was run-out off the final ball attempting the second run which would have, if completed, tied the game. The difference between the teams, in the end, was one run, ensuring Delhi made it through.

Mumbai beat Tamil Nadu by 31 runs at the Brabourne Stadium to seal their place in the tournament semi-final. Wasim Jaffer led the way at the top of the order, smashing 51 in 31 balls, adding 86 for the second wicket with Abhishek Nayar, who top-scored with 79. Nayar struck eight fours and four sixes and was the fourth wicket to fall, with the score on 143. Aditya Tare and Ajit Agarkar chipped in with 17 and 15 respectively down the order and Mumbai were able to stretch their score to 193 for 9.

TN began well in their chase with openers S Anirudha and Abhinav Mukund adding 62 but a collective bowling effort restrained the team thereafter. Dhawal Kulkarni picked up three wickets and Iqbal Abdulla, Javed Khan and Ankeet Chavan bagged two each. Barring Suresh Kumar's 49, there was no significant resistance from the middle order and TN were bowled out for 162 in the penultimate over.

Tamil Nadu 2nd innings Partnerships

WktRunsPlayers
1st62S AnirudhaA Mukund
2nd6S AnirudhaS Badrinath
3rd5KD KarthikS Badrinath
4th3S BadrinathKB Arun Karthik
5th24SS KumarKB Arun Karthik
6th37R AshwinSS Kumar
7th10C GanapathySS Kumar
8th1L BalajiC Ganapathy
9th9C GanapathyR Jesuraj
10th5C GanapathyRS Shah

Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy

Central Zone
TeamMWLPTNRR
MP440161.29
RLYS431120.802
UP4228-0.018
RAJ4134-0.764
VIDAR4040-1.276
East Zone
TeamMWLPTNRR
BENG430142.106
ASSAM421100.642
JHK4118-0.188
ODSA4126-0.54
TPURA4032-2.31
North Zone
TeamMWLPTNRR
PNJB541160.897
DELHI541160.452
HRYNA532120.003
SVCS53212-0.193
HP5144-0.465
J + K5050-0.681
South Zone
TeamMWLPTNRR
TN541161.432
KNTKA541161.155
KER522100.169
HYD5238-0.907
AP5136-1.088
GOA5144-0.931
West Zone
TeamMWLPTNRR
MUM431122.178
BRODA431121.088
SAU431120.28
MAHA4134-2.05
GUJ4040-1.501