Shubman Gill’s maiden T20 ton powers Punjab to Mushtaq Ali Trophy semis | Cricket News


CALCULATED: Shubman Gill celebrated their T20I call for the New Zealand tour in style, smashing their first century in the format as Punjab beat Karnataka by nine points in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy quarter-finals on Monday.
The fly-half batted to the last ball of the penultimate and had the best score with a career-best 126 in Punjab’s 225 for four.

In response, the two-time champions and runners-up from last season battled it out before being limited to 216-for-six. Punjab will face Himachal Pradesh in the first semi-final at Eden Gardens on Thursday.
Earlier, 23-year-old Gill, who is set for his T20I debut on the upcoming New Zealand tour, made a big statement.
Taking full advantage of a reprieve from Karnataka glover Luvnith Sisodia at 34, Gill fought his way to a 50-30 and then finished the century on 49.
Overall, he broke 11 fours and nine sixes on a shot that was a mix of artistry and aggression.
Set up Punjab had a shaky start as they lost Abhishek Sharma and Prabhsimran Singh early on but thereafter it was all about Gill.
The youngster forged a 151-point partnership with Anmolpreet Singh (59 from 43b) as they reached 161 from 16 overs.
Gill continued in the same vein with Sanvir Singh giving him good support with a brisk 27 not on 13 balls.
Veteran Manish Pandey lifted the 18/3 Karnataka with a 45-29 ball, then Abhinav Manohar kept them in the chase with an unremoved 62-29 ball.
Manoj Bhandage slammed 25 from 9 balls, while Manohar and Krishnappa Gowtham (30 not out; 14b) brought the equation down to 38 from the final two overs.
But Siddarth Kaul and Harpreet Brar kept their nerves to seal a win for Punjab.
Dhawan falls for 37 as Vidarbha knock out delhi
Delhi missed just one point in a tricky 158 chase to be knocked out by Vidarbha in a second quarter-final at the University of Jadavpur’s Second Campus in Salt Lake.
It was Yash Thakur who was the architect of their victory as he produced a perfect final to brush aside Lalit Yadav (17) and Lakshya Thareja (4) in three balls to tip the match in their favour.
Vidarbha will face Mumbai in the second semi-final at Eden.
Chasing 157, Delhi needed 26 from the final two overs and managed 16 on veteran Indian pacer Umesh Yadav.
In the final over, Thakur pocketed two wickets.
Earlier, Dhawan, who was named India’s ODI captain for the New Zealand tour, got off to a strong start as with Himmat Singh (27) he put up a 48-point stand.
But Singh became Thakur’s first victim, while Dhawan was sent off by Aditya Sarwate (2/16) in ninth as Vidarbha continued to take wickets at regular intervals.
Vidarbha scored 157 from five with skipper Akshay Wadkar leading from the front in a 63 from 53.
Bengal crashes, fails to defend 200 against Himachal
Bengal suffered a four-wicket defeat to Himachal Pradesh in another thrilling final of the last eight.
Shahbaz Ahmed scored the best for Bengal in a 32-ball 59 to take them to 199 for six.
In response, Himachal’s Akash Vasisht slammed an unbeaten 76 from 42 balls, while Nikhil Gangta scored 50 from 37 deliveries to seal a last-ball victory.
Mumbai to Saurashtra
Shreyas Iyer top scorer for Mumbai with a 30-ball 40 while Shivam Dube came with a 25 on 13 as Mumbai sealed a two-wicket win over Saurashtra.
Prerak Mankad’s explosive 25-ball 61, sprinkled with seven fours and three sixes, propelled Saurashtra 166 for eight.
In response, Mumbai lost two wickets inside the power play and skipper Ajinkya Rahane also failed to convert his start. But Dube held on to end the chase with three balls to spare.
Chetan Sakariya (4/33) and Kushang Patel (2/33) were the most successful bowlers.
Brief notes:
To the Gardens of Eden: Punjab 225/4; 20 overs (Shubman Gill 126, Anmolpreet Singh 59; Vidwath Kaverappa 3/44) b Karnataka 216/6; 20 overs (Abhinav Manohar 62 not out, Manish Pandey 45; Ramandeep Singh 2/26) by nine runs.
Saurashtra 166/8; 20 overs (Prerak Mankad 61; Tushar Deshpande 3/37, Mohit Avashti 2/23) lost to Mumbai 168/8; 20 overs (Shreyas Iyer 40, Shivam Dube 25 not out; Chetan Sakariya 4/33, Kushang Patel 2/33) by two wickets.
At JU Second Campus: Vidarbha 157/5; 20 overs (Akshay Wadkar 63) v Delhi 156/6; 20 overs (Yash Dhull 39 not out, Shikhar Dhawan 37; Yash Thakur 4/29) by one point.
At the Videocon Academy: Bengal 199/6; 20 overs (Shahbaz Ahmed 59; Kanwar Abhinay 4/47, Rishi Dhawan 2/40) lost to Himachal Pradesh 200/6; 20 overs (Akash Vasisht 76 not out, Nikhil Gangta 50; Ravi Kumar 2/29) by four wickets.
Composition of the semi-finals: Punjab against Himachal Pradesh; Vidarbha vs Mumbai (Thursday at Eden Gardens).



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