J&K suffers humiliating defeat against Kerala; Jharkhand, Delhi notch up wins

Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy

Excelsior Sports Correspondent

MULAPADU (AP), Feb 27: Jammu and Kashmir suffered a humiliating defeat against Kerala, while Jharkhand notched up their 4th straight win and Delhi drubbed Andhra Pradesh in the ongoing Group A matches of Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Cricket Tournament at Mulapadu in Andhra Pradesh.
Kerala thrashed Jammu and Kashimr by 94 runs, bundling out its rival for paltry 65 runs after making 159 for 7 in the stipulated 20 overs. For Kerala, Vinoop Manoharan top scored with 52 runs, while Mohd Azharudeen contributed valuable 32 runs. From Jammu and Kashmir, skipper Parvez Rasool and Irfan Pathan took 2 wickets each, while Ram Dayal claimed one wicket.
In reply, J&K bundled out for a meagre total of 65 runs, with Rasool being absent hurt, after suffering a finger injury while taking a magnificent catch after the bowling of Pathan earlier. Jatin top scored with 24 runs, while Pathan chipped in with 10 runs. None of the other batsmen could reach the double figure mark. From Kerala, Sudeshan Midhun was the pick of the bowlers, who took 3 important wickets, while Nidheesh and Shela Manoharan bagged 2 wickets each. Basil Thampi and Sandeep Warrier also claimed one wicket each.
In another match, the Jharkhand juggernaut rolled on as the team defeated Nagaland by 54 runs for its fourth straight victory.
Jharkhand piled up 197 for 3 in 20 overs riding on good knocks by captain Ishan Kishan (52, 39 balls, 11X4), Kumar Deobrat (69 not out) and Anukul Roy (47 not out) and then restricted Nagaland to 143 for 3.
Electing to bat, Kishan started off on a brisk note before losing opening partner Anand Singh (14, 3X4) at 20.
But, the aggressive left-hander stepped up the pace and took the attack to the Nagaland bowlers, adding 42 runs with Virat Singh (9, 15b).
After Virat’s exit, Kishan and Deobrat, who smashed five fours and six sixes in his swashbuckling 32-ball 69 runs, put on 24 runs.
The 111-run partnership for the fourth wicket in a
little over eight overs between Deobrat and Roy, who hit four boundaries and three sixes, shut out Nagaland as the bowlers wilted under the onslaught.
In reply, the Nagaland batsmen couldn’t force the pace and ended up 54 runs short.Sedezhalie Rupero, who made 38 from 54 balls, struggled to get the big hits while captain Rongsen Jonathan made 47 (33 balls, 4X4, 2X6). Paceman Varun Aaron bowled his four overs conceding just 13 runs and picked up one wicket.
In yet another match of Group A, Delhi defeated Nagaland by 32 runs.
Delhi scored 175 for 8 in 20 overs, with Unmukt Chand (70) and Lalit Yadav (31), while Andhra Pradesh, in reply, managed to score 143 runs. Ashwin Hebbar (38) and Shoaib Mohd Khan (26) not out were the main scorers. From Delhi, Subhodh Bhati scalped 4 important wickets by conceding 27 runs in his 4 overs.