Priyansh Arya and Ayush Badoni were the stars of the show as Delhi defeated Karnataka comprehensively by 45 runs in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT). This victory saw Delhi climb to the third position in Elite Group D, behind Jharkhand and Rajasthan. While Priyansh contributed well with the bat, Badoni gave a fantastic all-round performance and played a massive role in the side's win.
After winning the toss and deciding to bat first, Delhi didn't have a great start as they lost Yash Dhull cheaply for seven runs in the second over. However, a strong partnership between Priyansh and Badoni totally turned the tide. Both of them smacked the opposing bowlers all around the stadium, scoring at a rapid pace. The former proved to be the aggressor among the two as he tonked six maximums in his fabulous knock of 62.
The 110-run stand would come to an end in the 12th over as Shubhang Hegde got rid of Priyansh. Badoni wouldn't last long after reaching his half-century either and also got dismissed by Hegde for 53 in his very next over. With Delhi down to 127/3 and two new batters taking the crease, it looked as if the Karnataka bowlers will manage to end the innings on a positive note.
Rana and Dahiya's remarkable stand
However, the duo of Nitish Rana and Tejasvi Dahiya formed a superb partnership of 105 runs as Delhi ffinished off the innings on a high. While Rana remained unbeaten on 46, Dahiya completely stole the spotlight with his fiery knock of 53 runs from just 19 deliveries, including three boundaries and five towering sixes. The two helped Delhi in posting a mammoth total of 232/3 on the board.
In reply, Karnataka began their chase on a dismal note as openers BR Sharath and Mayank Agarwal were dismissed cheaply for six and nine runs respectively. Ishant Sharma and Digvesh Rathi helped Delhi start strong and it only got better for them as the latter sent Karun Nair back to the pavilion for just two runs. However, things turned a little sour for them as in-form Devdutt Padikkal formed a brilliant stand alongside Smaran Ravichandran.
The duo played several fine shots and took Karnataka's total over the 100-run mark. However, the experienced Ishant Sharma delivered big time and dismissed Padikkal for a well-played knock of 62. While Smaran would continue batting and soon reach his half-century. The target proved to be just too much as Badoni sent him back to the pavilion for 72 runs.
Karnataka's lower-order crumbles
Karnataka totally crumbled from this point and lost their last four wickets for the space of just seven runs. Badoni would go on to pick up a 4-fer as the opposition got bundled out for 187 in 19.3 overs. This saw Delhi win the match comfortably and reach 12 points in the SMAT. Their next match of the tournament will be against Rajasthan on December 6 while on the other hand, Karnatakka will be looking to bounce back from this loss in their next fixture that will be against Saurashtra.