Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy | Milind and Rahul star in Hyderabad’s five-wkt. win over M.P.

Rahul Buddhi’s clinical half-century and captain C.V. Milind’s three-wicket haul guided Hyderabad to a five-wicket win over Madhya Pradesh in its opening Elite Group-B match of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy T20 tournament at the Jadavpur University Ground on Wednesday.

Opting to bat, M.P. managed 144 for nine and Hyderabad cruised to victory with 11 balls to spare to avenge last year’s narrow defeat. Chasing a modest target, Hyderabad lost three wickets for 41 runs inside five overs. However, Rahul (59 n.o., 46b, 8×4, 1×6) batted with responsibility and forged an important 49-ball 59-run partnership with Tanay Thyagarajann (18, 19b, 1×4).

With the ball keeping low and holding a bit off the spinners, the two rotated the strike with an intention to take the game deep. Rahul, who primarily cut and pulled to get big shots, made a statement by hitting an off-driven four, a pulled six and a finely-cut four in consecutive deliveries off his former Mumbai Indians colleague, left-arm fast bowler Arshad Khan, in the 12th over.

After Tanay was run out off a direct throw in the 13th over, Rahul ensured his side crossed the line. Arfaz Khan played a useful cameo (18 n.o., 13b, 2×4, 1×6).

Seamers strike

Earlier, Milind (three for 34) led his fellow-pacers, including C. Rakshann and Arfaz, who took two wickets apiece, to restrict M.P.’s progress. M.P. lost wickets regularly as several of its batters, including Venkatesh Iyer, fell to loose or miscued shots. Shivang Kumar (45, 28b, 5×4, 1×6) stood out with a gritty knock.

In another match, opener Aryan Juyal (93 n.o., 57b, 11×4, 3×6) relied on his exceptional timing and placement to score a blazing half-century and help Uttar Pradesh record a convincing six-wicket win over Goa. Experienced pacers Bhuvneshwar Kumar (2/23) and Shivam Mavi (3/24) led the U.P. in stopping Goa at 172 for nine.

Auqib Nabi captured three wickets as Jammu & Kashmir posted a five-wicket victory over Maharashtra at the Eden Gardens.

Yudhvir Singh, Umran Malik and Abid Mushtaq, who later scored a nine-ball 18, claimed two wickets apiece to bundle out Maharashtra for 130.

The scores:

At Eden Gardens: Maharashtra 130 in 19.5 overs (Auqib Nabi 3/28) lost to Jammu and Kashmir 132/5 in 18.4 overs.

At Jadavpur University ground: Goa 172/9 in 20 overs (Abhinav Tejrana 72, Shivam Mavi 3/24) lost to Uttar Pradesh 173/4 in 18.2 overs (Aryan Juyal 93 n.o., Sameer Rizvi 38).

Madhya Pradesh 144/9 in 20 overs (Shivang Kumar 45, C.V. Milind 3/34) lost to Hyderabad 145/5 in 18.1 overs (Rahul Buddhi 59 n.o.).