Jharkhand beat TN by 28 runs; Saurashtra eke out one-run win over Karnataka

Ahmedabad, Dec 6 (PTI) Strong fifties from Kumar Kushagra and Virat Singh were complemented by a disciplined bowling effort as Jharkhand defeated Tamil Nadu by 28 runs in their Elite Group D match of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy here on Saturday.

Asked to bat, Jharkhand made a woeful start and slipped to 29 for 2 in the fifth over before Kushagra (84 off 48 balls) and Virat (72 off 39 balls) stitched together a 120-run stand to take the innings close to the 150 mark in the 15th over.

Virat and Anukul Roy then provided the late acceleration to propel Jharkhand to a strong 207 for 3.

Kushagra struck five fours and as many sixes, while Virat’s innings was laced with 10 boundaries and two sixes.

In reply, Tamil Nadu stayed in contention in the first half of the chase, with Sai Sudharsan (64 off 42 balls) anchoring the effort as they reached 124 for 2 in the 14th over.

However, Sudharsan's run-out in the same over triggered a collapse, and Tamil Nadu failed to recover, finishing at 179 for 7.

Sushant Mishra (2 for 51) and Bal Krishna (2 for 29) picked up two wickets apiece.

Saurashtra edge out Karnataka by one run ========================== In another match, Saurashtra registered their narrowest T20 victory in terms of runs, edging Karnataka by one run.

Batting first, Saurashtra rode on collective contributions, with Vishvaraj Jadeja (40) and Siddhant Rana (42) leading the way as they posted 178 for 8.

Their bowlers then held their nerve, with Chetan Sakariya (2 for 37), Jaydev Unadkat (2 for 29) and Prerak Mankad (2 for 37) sharing the spoils to restrict Karnataka to 177 for 9.

Devdutt Padikkal’s 46-ball 66 kept Karnataka in the contest as they reached 103 for 3 in the 13th over, but back-to-back wickets of Manvanth Kumar L (9) and Shubhang Hegde (14) in successive deliveries of the 19th over dented their chase.

Karnataka eventually fell short despite No. 11 batter Vijaykumar Vyshak striking two fours at the death.

Brief scores: Jharkhand 207 for 3 in 20 overs (Kumar Kushagra 84, Virat Singh 72; T Natarajan 1/36) beat Tamil Nadu 179 for 7 in 20 overs (Sai Sudharsan 64; Bal Krishna 2/29) by 28 runs.

Saurashtra 178 for 8 in 20 overs (Vishvaraj Jadeja 40, Siddhant Rana 42; Vijaykumar Vyshak 3/28) beat Karnataka 177 for 9 in 20 overs (Devdutt Padikkal 66; Chetan Sakariya 2/37) by one run. PTI ATK APA APA