Opener Unmukt Chand slammed a sublime century with a broken jaw to power Delhi to a 55-run victory over Uttar Pradesh in the Vijay Hazare Trophy on Monday.
Chand was dropped from the semi-final and final of the Ranji Trophy after a poor run of form, but regained his confidence with a half-century in the title clash of the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 tournament, which his team won.
Sent into bat after UP won the toss, Delhi rode on Chand’s 116 off 125 balls to notch up 307/6 in 50 overs. A former U-19 World Cup winning captain, Chand was injured in the nets, just before the start of the match. Chand belted 12 boundaries and three sixes during his stay in the middle. Chand’s opening partner, Hiten Dalal, was the next best scorer with 57 off 64 balls, hitting eight fours. The two added 107 runs for the first wicket, laying a solid foundation for Delhi to make a big total.
For Uttar Pradesh, middle-order batsman Umang Sharma scored a fine 102 off 104, but his effort went in vain as left-arm pacer Kulwant Khejroliya grabbed four wickets to help Delhi bowl out their opponents for 252.
Shankar, Gandhi star in TN win
Tamil Nadu rode on centuries by captain Vijay Shankar and M Kaushik Gandhi to post a 76-run win over Gujarat in their opening match of the Vijay Hazare Trophy. The home side posted 311/ 8 in 50 overs thanks to the 219-run partnership between Shankar (100) and Gandhi (127) and held off a late challenge by Bhargav Merai (101) to restrict Gujarat to 235 all out in 45.1 overs.
Mumbai win
Meanwhile, Surya Kumar Yadav blasted 11 fours and seven sixes in an 85-ball unbeaten 134 while Jay Bista hit 90 to shine in Mumbai’s 74-run victory over Madhya Pradesh. In the day’s other match, Andhra Pradesh cruised to a six-wicket win over Team Rajasthan thanks to B Sumanth’s unbeaten 71.
Brief scores
Delhi: 307/6 (Unmukt Chand 116) beat Uttar Pradesh: 252 all out (Umang Sharma 102; Kulwant Khejroliya 4/34, Pradeep Sangwan 3/28). Points Delhi: 4, UP: 0
Tamil Nadu 311/8 (M Kaushik Gandhi 127, Vijay Shankar 100) beat Gujarat 235 all out (Bhargav Merai 101; A Aswin Crist 3/44). Points Tamil Nadu: 4; Gujarat: 0.
Mumbai 332/5 (Surya Kumar Yadav 134 not out) beat Madhya Pradesh 258 (Shams Mulani 4/62). Points: Mumbai: 4; Madhya Pradesh: 0.
Rajasthan 229/6 (Chetan Bist 82 not out) lost to Andhra 235/4 (B Sumanth 71 not out). Points: Andhra: 4; Team Rajasthan: 0.
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