Vijay Hazare Wrap: Delhi, Mumbai & Puducherry Seal Passage to Quarterfinals

The final day of the group stages of the 2019 Vijay Hazare Trophy saw the quarterfinal line-up for the tournament get completed.

A total of 38 teams were vying for a spot in the quarters, meaning a number of decent sides failed to make the cut. The action on Thursday (October 17) saw Delhi, Mumbai & Puducherry qualify for the knockouts.

Delhi Triumph in Low-scoring Encounter

Delhi needed a win to seal their passage into the final eight and got the required result against Himachal Pradesh, although they lost seven wickets in pursuit of a relatively low target of 177.

Electing to field first, Delhi would have been confident of an easy win after a four-wicket haul from Pawan Negi saw them bundle out the opposition for 176.

In reply, all of Delhi’s batsmen got starts but no one could get a big score to anchor the innings, something that didn’t affect them due to the nature of the target.

UP Loss Sees Mumbai Go Through

Uttar Pradesh needed a win against a struggling Haryana side to stay in contention for a spot in the quarterfinals, yet their loss saw Mumbai grab that spot on account of a superior Net Run Rate.

Batting first, Haryana’s middle-order failed to deliver when needed and they collapsed to 208 all out. In response, UP were 40-3 before Akshdeep Nath (37) and Rinku Singh (68) revived the chase with a 74-run stand.

Once they were gone, however, UP didn’t put up much resistance and were dismissed for 188.

Puducherry Beat Assam to Assure Q/F Spot

Puducherry came into the final day knowing a win would guarantee them promotion to the Elite Group C as well as ensure they made the quarters and they got past Assam with minimum fuss.

Assam, after being put in to bat first, were bundled out for 115. Puducherry lost 5 wickets during the chase but were still able to get the required runs in 22 overs.

Other Results

In a dead rubber Group C encounter, Maharashtra beat Vidarbha by 33 runs thanks to Ankit Bawne’s 92 as well as a five-wicket haul from Azim Kazi.

Bawne’s half-century propelled Maharashtra to 260-7 and Vidarbha could only muster 227 all out in response.

In a Plate Group encounter, Uttarakhand beat Chandigarh by 2 wickets in a match that went down to the wire.

Uttarakhand scored 253-8 in their 50 overs and at one point looked certain to win with Chandigarh at 220-8 in 45.5 overs, but they eked out a close win.

In another Plate Group encounter, Nagaland defeated Manipur by 5 runs. Batting first, Nagaland managed 240 all out but Manipur, despite batting 50 overs, only managed 235-8 in reply.

• Ankit Bhawne
• Pawan Negi
• Rinku Singh
• Vijay Hazare Trophy 2019