Karun Nair broke the List A record for most consecutive runs between dismissals with his third successive Vijay Hazare Trophy century. (BCCI)Karun Nair set a new world record for the most runs (542) scored between dismissals in List A cricket as Vidarbha inched closer to the knockouts of the Vijay Hazare Trophy on Friday. The 33-year-old who has been on sublime form over the past 12 months hit his fourth century (112) of the ongoing group stages at Vizianagaram as Vidarbha chased Uttar Pradesh total of 307 with 16 balls to spare to confirm their quarterfinal spot in Group D where Tamil Nadu and Uttar Pradesh are level on 14 points at second spot with one game to go.
Chasing 308 for their fifth straight win, Vidarbha had the edge particularly given the form of their top-order. Walking in at No.3 after opener Dhruv Shorey departed in the 12th over, Karun straightaway hit the groove, denying UP any further inroads. With Yash Rathod solid at the other end, Karun once again went on to build a match-winning innings during which he surpassed James Franklin’s record tally of 527 runs between two dismissals. Having made 111 not out, 44*, 163* and 112* in his previous four innings without getting dismissed, Karun went past Franklin’s tally when he touched the three-figure mark. Though Karun couldn’t stay till the end to see of the chase, Rathod’s unbeaten 138 took Vidarbha home.
For UP, this loss which came despite Sameer Rizvi scored an 82-ball 105, puts them on the brink of elimination. Having played all six matches, they now have only 14 points and TN with a game in hand against Chhattisgarh have a chance to seal the quarterfinal berth on Sunday with a win. Even if TN lose their last game, their superior NRR which got a big lift after they defeated Mizoram by 10 wickets and 240 balls to spare.
Bowling first, TN bowled out Mizoram for 71 with spinner Varun Chakravarthy returning with figures of 5.2-2-9-5. With an eye on NRR, their two in form openers Tushar Raheja and N Jagadeesan went full throttle to finish the chase at the 10 over mark.
Brief Scores: At Vizianagaram: UP 307/8 in 50 overs (Sameer Rizvi 105, Madhav Kaushik 41; Nachiket Bhute 4/65) lost to Vidarbha 313/2 in 47.2 overs (Yash Rathod 138 n.o, Karun Nair 112).Mizoram 71 in 21.2 overs (Agni Chopra 23; Varun Chakravarthy 5/9) lost to Tamil Nadu 75/0 in 10 overs (N Jagadeesan 46 n.o).
Group C is heading for another tight finish with Punjab staying in the hunt for a quarterfinal berth thanks to their power-packed batting line-up that once again took them past 400-run mark while batting first against Hyderabad. Like in their previous outing against Saurashtra, it was their two openers who led from the front to set the tone. Though skipper Abhishek Sharma missed a second successive century by seven runs, Prabhsimran Singh didn’t miss out on the opportunity as he top-scored with 137 as the left-right duo put on 196-run stand for the first wicket.
Thereafter Anmolpreet Singh scored 46 at No.3 before Ramandeep Singh made 80 of 53 deliveries as Punjab ended with 426/4. Chasing a stiff target, Hyderabad needed a lot from their top-order, but barring Nitish Reddy who scored 111, the rest didn’t contribute much. If not for Tanay Thyagarajan’s 74 at No.7, Hyderabad would have fallen way short of the 346 they made. With the win, Punjab (18) go to the second spot with Mumbai trailing them closely with 16 points.
Batting first against Pondicherry, Mumbai were in a spot of bother at 82/5 with Suryakumar Yadav falling for a first-ball zero. But skipper Shreyas Iyer held their innings together with an unbeaten 137 off 133 deliveries as Mumbai ended up with 290/9. The total proved more than sufficient as Shardul Thakur led from the front with three wickets as Pondicherry were bowled out for 127.
In the other game, a collective effort from their batsmen helped Karnataka post 349/7 against Saurashtra, before their bowlers gave them a 60-run win to retain the top spot.
Brief Scores: At Ahmedabad: Punjab 426/4 in 50 overs (Prabhsimran Singh 137, Abhishek Sharma 93, Ramandeep Singh 80) bt Hyderabad 346 in 47.5 overs (Nitish Reddy 111, Tanay Thyagarajan 74; Arshdeep Singh 4/50; Raghu Sharma 3/68).
Mumbai 290/9 in 50 overs (Shreyas Iyer 137, Atharva Ankolekar 43) bt Pondicherry 127 in 27.2 overs (Akash Kargave 54; Shardul Thakur 3/47).
In other groups, Gujarat and Haryana have confirmed their quarterfinal spot in Group A with one round to go. With 24 and 20 points their tally remains out of reach for the rest. In Group B, Maharashtra are also assured of a knockout spot as they sit top with 20 points. But there is a three-way fight for the second spot between Andhra, Railways and Rajasthan. Bengal lead Group E with 18 points and are assured of a knockout spot alongside Baroda.
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