Gill's blistering 126 takes Punjab to semis; Vidarbha, HP, Mumbai also through
A dropped chance proved quite costly for Karnataka in the outcome of the high-scoring game at the Eden Gardens as Punjab secured a nine-run victory in the quarterfinal to progress to the semifinals. Shubman Gill, who was dropped by wicketkeeper Luvnith Sisodia on 34, went on to score a career-best 126 off only 55 deliveries to power Punjab to 225/4. Abhinav Manohar's unbeaten 62 off 29 went in vain as Karnataka ended up with 216/6 to bow out of the competition.
Asked to bat first, Punjab lost Abhishek Sharma and Prabhsimran Singh early but a 151-run partnership between Gill and Anmolpreet Singh provided a superb platform for Punjab. Anmolpreet contributed 59 off 43 in the third wicket stand which came to an end in the 16th over with Punjab having managed 161. Gill and Sanvir Singh provided a flourishing end to the innings as Punjab amassed 64 off the last four overs. Gill, who was dismissed in the 19th over, finished with 11 fours and as many as nine sixes while Sanvir struck two fours and two sixes in his unbeaten 27 off 13.
Karnataka were in a lot of trouble early in the chase, slipping to 18/3 inside three overs. But Manish Pandey (45 off 29) and LR Chethan (33 off 25) revived the innings with their 71-run association. Manoj Bhandage then struck 25 off 9 deliveries, which was followed by some good hitting from Manohar and Krishnappa Gowtham who brought it down to 55 off the last three overs. Karnataka needed 38 off 12 but could manage only 12 off the 19th over which was bowled by Siddarth Kaul. They needed 26 in the final over and Harpreet Brar held his nerve as he gave away 16, with only five runs coming off his first three balls that sealed the deal for Punjab.
Brief scores: Punjab 225/4 in 20 overs (Shubman Gill 126, Anmolpreet Singh 59; Vidhwath Kaverappa 3-44) beat Karnataka 216/6 in 20 overs (Abhinav Manohar 62*, Manish Pandey 45; Ramandeep Singh 2-26) by 9 runs.
Yash Thakur's excellent final over helped Vidarbha knock Delhi out with a thrilling one-run victory at the Jadavpur University Campus Ground in Kolkata. Akshay Wadkar's 63 off 53 served as the backbone of Vidarbha's first innings effort as they posted 157/5. Yash Dhull (39* off 40) was the top scorer for Delhi but he was not able to take them over the line as Thakur's 4-29 helped Vidarbha move into the semifinals.
Opting to bowl, Delhi struck early through Navdeep Saini who dismissed Atharva Taide in the second over. A 60-run partnership between Sanjay Raghunath and Wadkar ensued, although their scoring rate was just over six. Delhi hit back with quick wickets to leave Vidarbha at 110/4 after 16 overs. But Shubham Dubey's unbeaten 29 off 13 served Vidarbha well in the death as they managed 47 in the last 4 overs.
The chase started with a 48-run stand between Shikhar Dhawan and Himmat Singh which came in less than five overs. But Vidarbha managed to apply the brakes after the halfway stage and also picked up regular wickets. Delhi, who needed 26 off the last two overs, got 16 in the penultimate over which was bowled by Umesh Yadav. But Thakur did an excellent job in the final over, bagging two wickets as it came down to four off the last two. Shivank Vashisht and Dhull could only manage singles, leaving Delhi heart-broken.
Brief scores: Vidarbha 157/5 in 20 overs (Akshay Wadkar 63, Sanjay Raghunath 31; Ishant Shaarma 1-21) beat Delhi 156/6 in 20 overs (Yash Dhull 39*, Shikhar Dhawan 37; Yash Thakur 4-29) by 1 run.
In yet another thrilling finish that went down to the final delivery, Himachal Pradesh chased down a target of 200 against Bengal at the Videocon Academy Ground in Saltair, Kolkata to book their semis berth. Shahbaz Ahmed's 59 off 32 and Ritwik Chowdhury's 32* off 11 powered Bengal to 199/6. Akash Vasisht struck an unbeaten 76 off 42 in the chase while Nikhil Gangta scored a useful 50 off 37 as Himachal ended Bengal's campaign.
Losing regular wickets after being asked to bat, Bengal were 92/4 in the 14th over, with Karan Lal's 21 being the highest among the top four. But Shahbaz's knock, which included 4 fours and as many sixes, gave the innings a much-needed boost. Bengal had reached 145 when Shahbaz fell in the 18th over. But Ritwik, who struck one four and four sixes, along with Agniv Pan (28 off 10, 2 fours and 3 sixes), provided the blitz in the death overs.
Sumeet Verma and Ankush Bains struck regular boundaries after Prashant Chopra was dismissed early in the chase. Himachal crossed 60 before the powerplay was completed but Bengal hit back with quick wickets to leave them at 71/4 in the seventh over. Himachal, though, got back on track through a 112-run stand between Vasisht and Gangta. The wickets of Gangta and Pankaj Jaiswal in successive deliveries left Himachal needing 17 off the last over. Mukesh Kumar, however, couldn't defend it as Himachal captain Rishi Dhawan struck two fours in the final over.
Brief scores: Bengal 199/6 in 20 overs (Shahbaz Ahmed 59, Ritwik Chowdhury 32*; K Abhinay 4-47) lost to Himachal Pradesh 200/6 in 20 overs (Akash Vasisht 76*, Nikhil Gangta 50; Ravi Kumar 2-29) by 4 wickets.
The fourth quarterfinal clash also went down to the last over with Mumbai emerging victorious by two wickets against Saurashtra at the Eden Gardens. Prerak Mankad's 61 off only 25 deliveries helped Saurashtra post a challenging 166/8. Shreyas Iyer top-scored with 40 off 30 while Shivam Dube providing the finishing touches to the chase as his 25 not out off 13 helped Mumbai over the line with three deliveries to spare.
Opting to bat, Saurashtra's top four made useful contributions, with Sheldon Jackson's 31 being the highest among the lot. But it was only after Mankad's arrival that the innings received a boost. Saurashtra, who were 73/4 at the end of the 11th over, picked up pace as Mankad took the attack to the Mumbai bowlers, striking seven fours and three sixes. But Saurashtra weren't able to capitalise in the last three overs, losing quick wickets. Mohit Avasthi dismissed Mankad in the 18th while Tushar Deshpande picked up three wickets in the 19th over. Only 20 runs came in the last three overs as Mumbai did well to tie Saurashtra down.
Prithvi Shaw fell early in the chase while Yashasvi Jaiswal and Ajinkya Rahane got out after promising starts, leaving Mumbai at 52/3 in the fifth over. A solid partnership between Shreyas and Sairaj Patil ensued, with the pair adding 63 at a quick rate. Mumbai, however, lost quick wickets and slipped to 132/6 in 17 overs. Needing 35 off the last three overs, Dube managed a six and a four off Jaydev Unadkat in the 18th, which yielded 17. Chetan Sakariya went for 13 in the next over, before Dube finished it off with a boundary off Chirag Jani in the final over.
Brief scores: Saurashtra 166/8 in 20 overs (Prerak Mankad 61, Sheldon Jackson 31; Tushar Deshpande 3-37) lost to Mumbai 168/8 in 19.3 overs (Shreyas Iyer 40, Sairaj Patil 31; Chetan Sakariya 4-33) by 2 wickets.
Mumbai will face Vidarbha while Punjab take on Himachal Pradesh in the semifinals on November 3.
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