Jagjit Singh Sandhu’s fine all-round performance and Arjun Azad’s excellent half-century piloted Chandigarh to a four-wicket win over Hyderabad in a Group-B match of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy at the Eden Gardens here on Monday.
Despite the loss, Hyderabad moved into the Super League as the group topper. Madhya Pradesh, which lost its last engagement and was tied on 16 points with Maharashtra, Goa and Jammu and Kashmir, also reached the next stage on the basis of a better net run rate.
Having ensured a place in the Super League, Hyderabad opted to bat in the forenoon to give its batters some practice and managed 146 for eight. Chandigarh achieved the target with a ball to spare to end its campaign on a high.
Even though openers Tanmay Agarwal and Rishiket Sisodia fell in seamer Jagjit Singh Sandhu’s well-executed second over, Aman Rao (33, 26b, 2×4, 2×6) and Pragnay Reddy (43, 31b, 4×4, 2×6) did not mind taking risks. Despite three reprieves, Hyderabad aggregated 61 for two in the PowerPlay.
The Aman-Pragnay combination put up a 51-ball 75-run partnership before the Chandigarh bowlers’ tidy performance stifled Hyderabad.
Lanky off-spinner Chiragvir Dhindsa, who returned two for 18, mixed his length with well-controlled flight to bowl Aman and have Pragnay caught at point with fuller deliveries.
While the experienced Sandeep Sharma scalped two, disciplined seamer Rohit Dhanda dismissed one.
Tanay Thyagarajann’s useful knock (27, 23b, 2×6) also benefited Hyderabad.
Chandigarh opener Arjun (63, 48b, 8×4, 2×6) played some crisp shots on both sides.
After adding 41 with Manan Vohra, who was scalped by Tanay, Arjun put on a vital 68-run stand with Shivam Bhambri (42, 36b, 5×4).
Though the Hyderabad bowlers took a few wickets in the death overs, Jagjit (12 n.o., 6b, 1×4, 1×6) flexed his muscles to help Chandigarh score 12 in the thrilling final over.
In other matches, Jammu and Kashmir rode on Auqib Nabi’s excellent all-round showing (32, 3/19) to beat Madhya Pradesh by 13 runs, Maharashtra defeated Goa by 15 runs to script its fourth victory and Bihar upset Uttar Pradesh by six wickets to post its first win.
The scores: At Eden Gardens: Jammu and Kashmir 150/9 in 20 overs (Auqib Nabi 32, Tripuresh Singh 3/32) bt Madhya Pradesh 137 in 20 overs (Harsh Gawali 33, Harpreet Singh Bhatia 32, Auqib Nabi 3/19, Sunil Kumar 3/32).
Hyderabad 146/8 in 20 overs (Aman Rao 33, Pragnay Reddy 43, Jagjit Singh Sandhu 3/36) lost to Chandigarh 147/6 in 19.5 overs (Arjun Azad 63, Shivam Bhambri 42).
At Jadavpur University ground: Uttar Pradesh 144/6 in 20 overs (Prashant Veer 40 n.o., Mangal Mahrour 3/12) lost to Bihar 145/4 in 19.2 overs (Ayush Loharuka 36, Piyush Singh 57, Prince Yadav 3/24).
Maharashtra 161/7 in 20 overs (Rahul Tripathi 83 n.o., V. Koushik 3/20) bt Goa 146 in 19.3 overs (Lalit Yadav 49, Darshan Misal 31, Jalaj Saxena 3/22, Tanay Sanghvi 3/23, Vicky Otswal 3/27).
Group-B table: Hyderabad 7-5-2-20 (1.423); Madhya Pradesh 7-4-3-16 (0.935); Maharashtra 7-4-3-16 (0.063); Goa 7-4-3-16 (-0.013); Jammu & Kashmir 7-4-3-16 (-0.538); Uttar Pradesh 7-3-4-12 (0.634); Chandigarh 7-3-4-12 (-1.092), Bihar 7-1-6-4 (-1.342).
Published – December 08, 2025 09:03 pm IST
