Mithali Raj got Railways off to a winning start with a swashbuckling 74-run knock in the ongoing women’s T20 matches on Monday. The Railways beat Odisha by 54 runs and now top the Super League points table. In the other Super League match, Smriti Mandhana’s quickfire 69* helped set up the match in Maharashtra’s favour against Goa.
In the Plate Group knockouts, Fatima Jaffer claimed three for seven to put Mumbai in command while S Naik, Sunetra ensured the team entered the semifinals. In the other quarterfinal, Uttar Pradesh beat Baroda to make it to the next round.
Here are the highlights of the day:
Elite Super League
Odisha vs Railways: Railways 134/3 in 20 overs (M Raj 74, MD Thirushkamini 39, S Malik 1/9) beat Odisha 80/2 in 20 overs (M Meheta 40*, M Behera 21, P Yadav 2/9) by 54 runs
Mithali Raj powered Railways to 134 for three with a 51-ball 74 comprising seven boundaries. The stylish top-order batswoman was involved a 97-run partnership for the second wicket with MD Thirushkamini (39 off 50) until the opener was run out. The Railways skipper too was run out with a ball left in the innings.
Railways then used as many as seven bowlers to keep Odisha in check. Although only two wickets fell in the innings - both taken by Poonam Yadav - Railways kept the flow of runs in check. Madhuri Meheta remained unbeaten on 40.
Goa vs Maharashtra: Maharashtra 132/1 in 20 overs (S Mandhana 69*, A Patil 42*, R Chavan 1/26) beat Goa 100/7 in 20 overs (Y Sunanda 42, S Pandey 21, S Mane 3/20) by 32 runs
Propelled by Smriti Mandhana's unbeaten 57-ball 69 and A Patil's 35-ball 42 not out, Maharashtra set Goa a stiff target in their opening game of the Super League. The pair was involved in a 98-run unbroken stand for the second wicket after the team was asked to bat in Indore.
S Mane then claimed both the Goa openers to reduce the team to 14 for two. While she finished with three for 20, D Vaidya and M Magre picked a wicket each to maintain a stranglehold on the game and bowl the team to a comprehensive win.
Plate QFs
Mumbai vs Haryana: Haryana 109/6 in 20 overs (MB Joshi 51, F Jaffer 3/7) lost to Mumbai 112/5 in 19.3 overs (S Naik 47, Sunetra 41, P Bose 2/10) by 5 wickets
After Mumbai restricted Haryana to 109/6 thanks to a maiden last over by Fatima Jaffer (three for seven), the batters chased down the total with three balls to spare. Opener MB Joshi's half-century and SM Khatri's 31 had helped the team past the three-figure mark, but Jaffer claimed three wickets in the last over while one was run out which set Mumbai a 110-run target.
S Naik and Sunetra then got Mumbai off to a good start with a 69-run opening stand until the latter was out for 41. Naik followed her back 18 runs later for 47. B Tamore then took the team across the line as they booked a semifinal spot.
Baroda vs UP: Baroda 104/6 in 20 overs (B Surti 28, P Patel 22, Z Firdos 2/15) lost to UP 105/7 in 18.3 overs (Deepti 41, S Sahu 27*, S Sharma 1/8) by 3 wickets.
In the second quarterfinal, Uttar Pradesh comfortably chased down the 105-run target with nine balls to spare. While Deepti took the team past the half way mark with a 36-ball 41 before being run out, Shefali Sahu took the team to the finish line with an unbeaten 27-ball 37. Their efforts ensured the team a place in the next phase.
Earlier, Zeenat Firdos' two for 15 and a wicket each by Apurwa Bhardwaj and Shivangi Raj helped UP restrict Baroda to 104/6.
