India batter roars after being snubbed for NZ ODIs, rescues Maharashtra with record-equalling 15th ton in VHT

Maharashtra captain Ruturaj Gaikwad saved the team from a batting collapse and went on to score a fantastic hundred against Goa in the Vijay Hazare Trophy. The 28-year-old also equalled the all-time record for the most centuries in the domestic tournament and has now reached triple figures a total of 15 times.

After winning the toss and deciding to bat first, Maharashtra had a horrendous start. They lost both Arshin Kulkarni and Ankit Bawne to Vasuki Koushik in the very first over before Prithvi Shaw got dismissed by Arjun Tendulkar in the second over. Gaikwad took the crease with the side in deep trouble at 2/3. It was quite a challenging pitch and the batters failed to unleash any sort of attacks in the opening hour.

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Koushik would then go on to take the wicket of Siddharth Mhatre in the 11th over as Mahrashtra's top-order got decimated. Both Saurabh Nawale and Ramakrishna Ghosh would also lose their wickets for cheap as the side went down to 52/6 at one stage. They desperately needed someone to stop the batting collapse and Gaikwad obliged.

Gaikwad and Ostwal's crucial partnership

He formed a much-needed partnership alongside Vicky Ostwal and provided the team with some much-needed stability. With the wicket still providing help to the bowlers, both the batters played sensibly and helped Maharashtra go well over the 100-run mark. Both the batters reached their fifties and it looked like they would register big scores, however Ostwal lost his wicket to Lalit Yadav for 53 runs in the 43rd over. The 106-run partnership came to an end as Maharashtra stood at 158/7.

Gaikwad was then joined by Rajvardhan Hangargekar on the crease and the duo totally dominated in the last 7 overs. They took the side's total over the 200-run mark and Gaikwad brought up his century in the process.This saw him tie his senior teammate Ankit Bawne for the most tons in the Vijay Hazare Trophy at 15 each.

Most hundreds in Vijay Hazare Trophy -

1. Ankit Bawne (Maharashtra) - 15 centuries

2. Ruturaj Gaikwad (Maharashtra) - 15 centuries

3. Devdutt Padikkal (Karnataka) - 14 centuries

Gaikwad helps Maharashtra finish strong

Gaikwad's job wasn't over yet as he had to get Maharashtra to a respectable total. He scored at rapid pace even after reaching his hundred and eventually remained unbeaten on 134 runs from 131 deliveries, hitting 8 boundaries and 6 maximums. On the other hand, Hangargekar also played an impactful cameo of 32 as Maharashtra posted a fighting total of 249/7 after 50 overs.