Qamran, Pundir, Samad fifties go in vain as Murali Vijay’s superb ton powers TN to win over J&K

Excelsior Sports Correspondent
JAIPUR, Oct 4: Magnificent half centuries by youngsters Qamran Iqbal, Shubham Singh Pundir and Abdul Samad went in vain as out of favour India batsman Murali Vijay smashed a brilliant ton (117) to power Tamil Nadu to its fifth straight win in the Vijay Hazare Trophy Group C,trouncing Jammu & Kashmir by eight wickets at KL Saini Stadium, Jaipur today.
Chasing 234 for a win,Vijay and his 166-run second wicket partnership with Aparajith (86 not out) saw TN coast home.
Vijay, fresh from a county stint with Somerset, played superb shots all round the wicket.
After a cautious start, the stylish right-hander went on overdrive to fashion Tamil Nadu’s big win.
Earlier, put in to bat, J&K made slow progress before three wickets, including that of captain Parvez Rasool (6) set the team back.
Opener Qamran Iqbal held firm and made 67 (87 balls, 7 fours, 1 six) and there were important contributions from the consistent Shubham Singh Pundir (66) and Abdul Samad (50), which helped J&K reach a respectable score of 233 in 50 overs.
For Tamil Nadu, left-arm spinner R Sai Kishore was the pick of the bowlers, who took 2 wickets by conceding just 17 runs in his quota of 10 overs. Left-arm medium pacer T Natarajan (2/45) also scalped two wickets.
Brief scores: J&K 238 for 9 in 50 overs (Qamran Iqbal 67, Shubham Singh
Pundir 66, Abdul Samad 50, R Sai Kishore 2/17, T Natarajan
2/45) lost to Tamil Nadu 239 for 2 in 48 overs (M Vijay 117, B Aparajith 86 not out Parvez Rasool 1/39 Ramdayal 1/41.
TN: 4 points, J&K: 0. Brief scores of other matches:
Madhya Pradesh 282 for 7 in 50 overs (Naman Ojha 130 (144 balls, 7 fours, 4 sixes), Anand Singh Bais 61, Diwesh Gurdev Pathania 4/50, Raj Bahadur Pal 2/58) lost to Services 283 for 3 in 47 overs (Ravi Chauhan 118, Rahul Gahlaut 107).
Services: 4 points, MP: 0.
Tripura 285 for 8 in 50 overs (Bishal Ghosh 128 (129 balls, 10 fours, 3 sixes), Tanmay Mishra 56, Ravi Bishnoi 2/47, A Choudhary 2/54, Rahul Chahar 2/64) beat Rajasthan 238 all out in 47 overs(Mahipal Lomror 71 ).
Tripura: 4 points, Rajasthan: 0.

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