Vijay Hazare Trophy: Virat, Pant fifties, Rinku’s ton highlights so far

NEW DELHI: Half-centuries from Virat Kohli and skipper Rishabh Pant took Delhi to 254/9 against Gujarat, while half-centuries from Sarfaraz Khan, Musheer Khan and Hardik Tamore took Mumbai to 331/7 against Uttarakhand in their Vijay Hazare Trophy (VHT) clashes on Friday.

In Delhi’s clash, after Gujarat opted to field first, India’s stalwarts Virat (77 in 61 balls, with 13 fours and a six) and skipper Rishabh Pant (70 in 79 balls, with eight fours and two sixes) played entertaining knocks, as Delhi posted 254/9 in 50 overs. Vishal B Jayswal (4/42) was Gujarat’s top bowler.

In Mumbai’s clash against Uttarakhand, Rohit Sharma, who had scored 155* in the team’s campaign opener, returned empty-handed with a duck. However, the fifties from Musheer (55 in 56 balls, with seven fours) and Sarfaraz (55 in 49 balls, with six fours and a six) and a late flourish from wicketkeeper-batter Hardik Tamore (93* in 82 balls, with seven fours and two sixes) took Mumbai to 331/7 in 50 overs from 230/6, with skipper Shardul Thakur (29) and Shams Mulani (48) also playing crucial knocks. Devendra Bora (3/74) was the pick of the bowlers for Uttarakhand.

In the clash between UP and Chandigarh, Chandigarh’s decision to field first proved fatal as Aryan Juyal (134 in 118 balls, with seven fours and eight sixes) and skipper Rinku Singh (106* in 60 balls, with 12 fours and four sixes) posted centuries, while another rising Indian star Dhruv Jurel (67 in 57 balls, with 11 fours) also scored big to take his team to 367/4 in 50 overs.

The clash between last year’s finalists Vidarbha and Hyderabad saw the former pile up 365/5 in 50 overs, with Dhruv Shorey (109* in 77 balls, with nine fours and six sixes), Aman Mokhande (82 in 78 balls, with seven fours and three sixes) and Yash Rathod (68 in 82 balls, with six fours) continuing their fine form at the top.

In the clash between Bengal and Baroda, India’s U19 WC 2024 star Raj Limbani (5/65) and RCB star Krunal Pandya (3/39) restricted Bengal to 205 in 38.3 overs.

The clash between Madhya Pradesh and Tamil Nadu saw TN opting to bat first and half-centuries from S Mohamed Ali (57 in 47 balls, with four boundaries and two sixes), skipper N Jagadeesan (55 in 89 balls, with four boundaries) and Sai Sudharsan (51 in 53 balls, with five fours) taking TN to 280 in 49.3 overs. RCB’s Rs 5.2 crore buy Mangesh Yadav (2/45) bowled a tight nine-over spell, while Kumar Kartikeya also took three wickets). (ANI)