article by Suvankar Roy
The Vijay Hazare Trophy, a premier tournament in white-ball cricket, saw two heavyweights, Delhi and Madhya Pradesh, knocked out of the competition during the high-stakes quarter-final stage. On January 13th, the second set of quarter-final clashes featured Punjab taking on Madhya Pradesh, while Delhi squared off against Vidarbha.
Punjab Dominates as Madhya Pradesh Falters
Winning the toss, Madhya Pradesh elected to bowl first. However, the decision backfired as Punjab’s openers came out firing. Harnoor Singh played a sublime knock, anchoring a massive 116-run opening stand before departing for a well-made 51. His partner, Prabhsimran Singh, was equally devastating, crafting a priceless innings of 88 runs.
The momentum continued with Anmolpreet Singh, who kept the pressure on the bowlers with a solid 70, followed by a brisk half-century from Nehal Wadhera. Down the order, Ramandeep Singh provided the finishing touch with a 15-ball 24-run cameo, remaining unbeaten. Punjab finished their 50 overs at a towering 345/6. For Madhya Pradesh, Tripuresh Singh and Venkatesh Iyer claimed two wickets each but proved to be expensive.
Chasing a mountain of 346, Madhya Pradesh’s batting lineup crumbled under pressure. Openers Yash Dubey (3) and Himanshu Mantri (18) fell early. While Rajat Patidar showed some grit with a fighting 38, he failed to convert it into a big score. The collapse was compounded when star player Venkatesh Iyer was dismissed for a duck. MP was eventually bundled out for a mere 162. Sanveer Singh was the pick of the bowlers for Punjab, dismantling the opposition with figures of 3/31 in 6 overs, supported by Gurnoor Brar, Ramandeep Singh, and Krish Bhagat, who took two wickets apiece. Punjab secured a massive 183-run victory to march into the semi-finals.
Vidarbha Outclasses Depleted Delhi
In the other quarter-final, Delhi won the toss and opted to field. Delhi’s lineup looked significantly weakened, missing the star power of Rishabh Pant, Virat Kohli, and Ayush Badoni. In their absence, veteran pacer Ishant Sharma took over the captaincy.
Vidarbha’s batting was led by a brilliant half-century from Atharva Taide, while Dhruv Shorey narrowly missed out on his fifty, falling for 49. The middle order was stabilized by Yash Rathod, whose superb 86-run knock ended unfortunately due to a mix-up resulting in a run-out. Vidarbha posted a competitive 300/9 in their allotted 50 overs.
Delhi’s chase never really found its rhythm against a disciplined Vidarbha bowling attack. Aside from Anuj Rawat’s valiant 66, no other batter made a significant impact, with Nitish Rana notably falling for a duck. Delhi’s innings folded in 45.1 overs for 224 runs. Nachiket Bhute was the star with the ball for Vidarbha, claiming 4 wickets, while skipper Harsh Dubey chipped in with three. Vidarbha clinical 76-run win earned them a well-deserved spot in the semi-finals.