The highest run-getter of the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2017-18 thus far, Mayank Agarwal (140 off 111) slammed another swashbuckling century in the quarter-final against Hyderabad. He was ably complemented by R Samarth (125) in setting up the game for Karnataka. Shreyas Gopal’s five-for then sealed a comprehensive win. In the second quarter-final at the Palam ground, Mumbai were knocked out of the tournament by Maharashtra.
QF1: Hyderabad vs Karnataka: After Karun Nair elected to bat at the Feroz Shah Kotla, Agarwal set the tone of the innings for Karnataka. Although the skipper was trapped lbw for 10 by Mohammed Siraj leaving Karnataka on 29 for three, Samarth and Agarwal ensured their team a massive total.
The pair joined forces to milk the Hyderabad attack as they added 242 runs for the second wicket partnership. Both batsmen posted centuries as they took the attack to the opposition. The opener, who has been in peak form through the season, smashed his third century of the ongoing one-day tournament while the No 3 bat posted his first.
The partnership was halted by T Ravi Teja with the wicket of Agarwal to give his side some relief. After 32 runs, Samarth too returned to the pavilion and Karnataka continued to lose wickets. Siraj ran through the rest of the line-up to finish with a five-for. Shreyas Gopal remained not out on 11 as Karnataka set Hyderabad a 348-run target.
Chasing a mammoth total, Akshath Reddy departed attempting to pull M Prasidh with 19 runs on the board. Ravi Teja then joined Rohit Rayudu in setting up a platform for the chase and the duo had taken the team to 90 when the opener returned lofting Stuart Binny towards long-on where Pavan Deshpande took the catch. Fourteen runs later, Ravi Teja was run out leaving Hyderabad on 104 for three. Ambati Raydu then joined B Sandeep in keeping the innings in the fray. The pair added 98 runs for the fourth wicket to take their team to 202 when Gopal struck to end the partnership. He accounted for B Sandeep and continued to run through the lineup thus tipping the balance in Karnataka’s favour.
Gopal finished with a five-for while Binny claimed three as they bowled Karnataka into the semi-finals with a 103-run win.
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QF2: Mumbai vs Maharashtra: Maharashtra cruised into the semi-finals with a seven-wicket win over Mumbai in Delhi.
Electing to bat, Mumbai lost their top three wickets - Prithvi Shaw (14), Siddhesh Lad (5) and Aditya Tare (16) by the 11th over. While P Dadhe accounted for the young opener and the in-form No 3 batsman, the Mumbai captain was bowled S Bacchav. At 47 for three, Suryakumar Yadav joined Shreyas Iyer in rebuilding the innings and they had carried the team to 94 until Himganekar struck. The bowler claimed Iyer bringing S Mulani to the crease.
Mulani was sent back by P Kore 48 runs leaving Mumbai on 142 for five. A while later, the bowler claimed Yadav off his own bowling leaving Mumbai on 177 for six. Nine runs later Shubham Ranjane was removed by Dadhe and in the next over Shivam Dube was run out leaving Mumbai on 191 for eight.
With the team past the 200-run mark, Dhrumil Matkar was sent back by A Sanklecha in the penultimate over. Dhawal Kulkarni then took the team to 222 for nine with Shivam Malhotra.
Chasing a modest total Maharashtra opener Ruturaj Gaikwad was sent back by Malhotra for 12. However, Shrikant Mundhe and R Tripathi stitched a 117-run partnership to set the chase on course. While Mundhe was run out, Tripathi was sent back by Mulani with the team on 135 three. Ankit Bawane and NS Shaikh then took Maharashtra to the target with an unbroken 89-run stand.
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