Mantri powers MP to top of Group A with 47-run win over Kerala

Ahmedabad, Dec 29 (PTI) Wicket-keeper batter Himanshu Mantri struck a well-made 93 before the bowlers joined the party as Madhya Pradesh beat Kerala by 47 runs to register their third consecutive win in group A here on Monday.

Sent into bat, one-down Mantri hit seven fours in his 105-ball knock to take his side to 214 all out in 46.1 overs.

Besides Mantri, Tripuresh Singh made 25-ball 37 down the order, while opener Harsh Gawli scored 22.

Left-arm orthodox spinner Ankit Sharma returned with match figures of 4/38, while right-arm spinner Baba Aparajith scalped 3 for 36.

Chasing the total, Kerala lost wickets at regular intervals to be bundled out for 167 in 40.1 overs.

Shubnam Sharma (3/16), Saransh Jain (2/17), Shivang Kumar (2/42), Aryan Pandey (1/17), Tripuresh Singh (1/36) and Kumar Kartikeya (1/37) were among wickets.

Muhammed Sharafuddeen top-scored with a 29-ball 42 down the order, while middle-order batter Salman Nazir made 30 off 57 balls.

Karnataka beat Tamil Nadu by 4 wickets ========================= Defending champions Karnataka notched up their third consecutive win, beating Tamil Nadu by four wickets.

Opting to field first, Karnataka rode on left-arm pacer Abhilash Shetty's 4 for 57 and right-arm medium pacer Vidhyadar Patil (2/62) and left-arm spinner Shreesha Achar's 2/47 to restrict TN to 288 in 49.5 overs.

Chasing the total, wicket-keeper batter Krishnan Shrijith (77 off 78), skipper Mayank Agarwal (58 off 78) and Shyeras Gopal (55 off 47) made substantial contributions as Karnataka hunt down the target in 47.1 overs, reaching 293 for 6.

Tripura beat Rajatsthan by 66 runs ===================== Tripura defeated Rajasthan by 66 runs to occupy the third spot in Group A.

Electing to bat, Tripura opening duo of Tejasvi Jaiwal (61 off 77) and Udiyan Bose (40 off 62) stitched 98 runs. Thereafter, Sridam Paul (50 off 61) and Rajat Dey (43 off 41) made useful contributions to take Tripura to 286 all out in 49.5 overs.

Defending the target, Vijay Shankar (4/30) and skipper Manisankar Murasingh (3/30) shone bright with the ball to restrict Rajasthan to 220.

Karan Lanmba was the lone bright spot for Rajasthan with 61 off 73 balls.

Jharkhand register commanding win over Puducherry ================================= Skipper Kumar Kushagra stole the limelight with a 104-ball 105, while Anukul Roy smashed 98 off 53 balls to hand Jharkhand a dominating 133-run win over Puducherry.

Sent into bat, Jharkhand rode on opener Utkarsh Singh's 70-ball 74, and Kushagra and Roy's knocks to post a mammoth 368 for 7.

In reply, Puducherry were 235 all out in 41.4 overs.

Brief Scores: Madhya Pradesh 214 all out in 46.1 overs (Himanshu Mantri 93; Ankit Sharma 4/38) beat Kerala 167 all out in 40.1 overs (Sharafuddeen 42; Shubham Sharma 3/16) by 47 runs.

Tamil Nadu 288 all out in 49.5 overs (Narayan Jagadeesan 65, Pradosh Ranjan Paul 57; Abhiash Shetty 4/57) lose to Karnataka 293 for 6 in 47.1 overs (Krishnan Shrijith 77, Mayank Agarwal 58; Sunny Sandu 1/25) by 4 wickets.

Tripura 286 all out in 49.5 overs (Tejasvi Jaiswal 61, Sridam Paul 50; Aniket Choudhary 3/64) beat Rajasthan 220 all out in 44.2 overs (Karan Lamba 61; Vijay Shankar 4/30) by 66 runs.

Jharkhand 368 for 7 in 50 overs (Kumar Kushagra 105, Anukul Roy 98; Parth Vaghani 3/55) beat Puducherry 235 all out in 41.4 overs (Jashwanth Shreeram 60; Rajandeep Singh 3/47). PTI SSC SSC ATK