Hardik and Meriwala Star as Baroda Knock Out Bengal

Shahbaz Ahmed battled valiantly with the bat in a tough chase but ultimately ran out of partners. It was a story of two birthday boys in Bengaluru. Baroda’s left-arm pacer Lukman Meriwala marked his special day by taking three quick wickets in the same over. At the same time, Bengal allrounder Shahbaz Ahmed kept his side in the hunt with a battling half-century in their chase of 173. However, Shahbaz ran out of support. Baroda defeated Bengal by 41 runs to secure a spot in the semi-finals of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.

Bengal began steadily, reaching 28 runs in three overs before Meriwala’s magical over turned the tide. He had Karan Lal dismissed for 6 and trapped Sudip Kumar Gharami lbw for 2. He then took a stunning return catch to dismiss Writtick Chatterjee for a duck. In the next over, Atit Sheth inflicted damage by dismissing the dangerous Abishek Porel for 22 off 13 balls.

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Shahbaz’s Fight Falls Short as Baroda’s Target of 173 Proves Too Much for Bengal

Shahbaz Ahmed walked in at No. 6 with Bengal reeling at 31 for 4 in pursuit of 173. He immediately began to counterattack alongside Ritwik Roy Chowdhury. The pair quickly found boundaries and sixes, hitting four boundaries and a six off the first nine balls of their partnership. Shahbaz then launched Sheth for a six and drove him for a boundary in the eighth. At the same time, Chowdhury dispatched Hardik Pandya for a six over fine leg in the tenth. However, on the very next ball, Hardik had Chowdhury caught behind, leaving Bengal at 88 for 5 at the halfway mark, with Shahbaz facing a tough challenge. Despite continuously losing partners, Shahbaz fought on, scoring 55 off 36 balls with three fours and four sixes before falling to Sheth in the 18th over.

Baroda’s total of 172 was anchored by their openers, Shashwat Rawat and Abhimanyusingh Rajput, who took their time to settle on a slow pitch. Rajput was fortunate early on, being dropped on 4 by Chowdhury off Mohammed Shami, who ended with expensive figures of 4-0-43-2. He also survived a close lbw call on 16, which went in his favor after a review. By the end of the powerplay, Baroda had reached 50 without losing a wicket. Rajput and Rawat increased the scoring rate, hitting a six over long-on off Saksham Choudhary in the eighth. Rawat and Rajput both sent Shahbaz for sixes and fours. Their partnership ended at 90 in the tenth over, but Baroda then lost four wickets for 23 runs in five overs. Despite the setbacks, cameos from Shivalik Sharma (24 off 17), Bhanu Pania (17 off 11), and Vishnu Solanki (16* off 7) saw them score 51 runs in the final four overs, setting a target of 173 that ultimately proved more than enough.

Rahane and Shedge Power Mumbai to Semis with a Dominant Chase of 222

Despite blasting a massive 221 for 6 in a thrilling six-fest at KSCA Cricket Ground in Alur, Vidarbha was knocked out.

Mumbai sent a strong message as they powered into the semi-finals of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. They quickly chased down a target of 222, finishing with six wickets and four deliveries to spare. Ajinkya Rahane led the charge with a brilliant 84 off 45 balls, sharing an 83-run partnership with Prithvi Shaw in just seven overs. Shaw made 49 off 26 balls, including five fours and four sixes, before Dipesh Parwani dismissed him at long-off, briefly halting Mumbai’s momentum. Rahane continued to dominate, hitting ten fours and three sixes before Yash Thakur sent him back in the 16th over, leaving Mumbai needing 65 from 30 balls. However, Suryansh Shedge’s explosive 24 runs off Mandar Mahale in the 17th over, including three sixes, and Shivam Dube’s two sixes in the 18th over effectively sealed the win for Mumbai.

Vidarbha’s total of 221 was built on half-centuries from Atharva Taide (66) and Apoorv Wankhade (51), who added 81 for the third wicket. At 100 for 2 after ten overs, Taide had reached fifty, and the pair smashed 46 runs in the next four overs. However, Atharva Ankolekar dismissed Taide and Hedge and bowled out Wankhade. Still, late fireworks from Shubham Dubey (43 off 19), Mahale (13 off 5), and Jitesh Sharma (11 off 6) lifted Vidarbha to a challenging total. Mumbai’s chase proved too strong in a game filled with 39 fours and 22 sixes.