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Ayush Mhatre stole the show as Mumbai raced to a seven-wicket victory over Vidarbha in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. The 18-year-old smacked a fine 49-ball hundred and played a massive role in his team's remarkable win. Though Vidarbha had set up a formidable target of 193, the Shardul Thakur-led side chased it down rather comfortably with 13 deliveries left to spare.
After being invited to bat first, Vidarbha began their innings on a strong note thanks to the opening pair of Atharva Taide and Aman Mokhade. The duo smacked opposing bowlers all around the Ekana Cricket stadium in Lucknow and formed a solid 115-run partnership. Left-arm spinner Atharva Ankolekar got the much-needed breakthrough for Mumbai as he dismissed Mokhade for 61 runs in the tenth over.
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Unfortunately for Vidarbha, the rest of their batters failed to deliver after Taide departed back to the pavilion for 64 runs in the 14th over. Mumbai's comeback was led by seamers Sairaj Patil and Shivam Dube, both of whom picked up three wickets each while Ankolekar also chipped in with two as they managed to restrict Vidarbha to 192/9 in 20 overs.
Mumbai got off to a dismal start
In reply, Mumbai's innings began on a disappointing note as Ajinkya Rahane got dismissed for a two-ball duck in the second over. Next batter Hardik Tamore departed in the next over, leaving the side on 21/2 at one stage. However, the stand between mHatre and Suryakumar Yadav completely shifted the game in Mumbai's favour. Not only did they provide the team with much-needed stability to their innings, but they also smashed boundaries whenever they could.
Mhatre was undoubtedly the aggressor among the two as he showed no mercy to the opposing bowlers and played many exemplary shots to take Mumbai over the 100-run mark. Though Suryakumar departed for 35 in the 12th over, Dube ensured that the run-flow didn't stop and played an impactful inning of 39 runs from just 19 deliveries. However, Mhatre proved to be the star performer for Mumbai as he remained unbeaten on 110 runs, hitting eight boundaries and sixes each as they continued their winning run in the SMAT.
Mumbai in blistering form
Mumbai had defeated Railways by seven wickets in their previous game of the tournament and made it two wins from two by handing a defeat to Vidrabha by the same margin. They will be looking to make it three victories in a row as they lock horns against Andhra Pradesh next on November 30.
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