Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy: Maharashtra clinch thrilling four-Wicket win over Kerala

HYDERABAD: Maharashtra has defeated Kerala in the group stage of the Syed Mushtaq Ali cricket tournament. Maharashtra defeated Kerala by 4 wickets in a thrilling match that went down to the last over. Divyang Hinganekar, who remained unbeaten on 43 and took 2 wickets, was the hero of Maharashtra's victory.

After winning the toss, Maharashtra elected to field first. Kerala's openers Sanju Samson and Rohan Kunnummal got off to a flying start. However, Sanju's dismissal for 19 runs proved to be a setback for Kerala. Vishnu Vinod (9) and Salman Nizar (1) were also dismissed very soon. The Kerala innings gained momentum once again with Muhammad Azharuddeen joining Rohan in the middle. Rohan smashed 45 runs off 24 balls, including five fours and two sixes. Sachin Baby, who came to bat following the dismissal of Rohan, also batted impressively. Muhammad Azharuddeen scored 40 runs off 29 balls before getting out. Sachin Baby remained unbeaten on 40 runs off 25 balls. Abdul Basith, who batted seventh, scored 24 runs off 14 balls to take the team score to 187/7 in 20 overs.

Chasing a target of 188, Maharashtra lost the wicket of skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad in the second over. Nidheesh dismissed Ruturaj to give Kerala a great start. However, the partnership between Rahul Tripathi and Arshin Kulkarni propelled the Maharashtra innings forward. Arshin Kulkarni scored 24 runs and Rahul Tripathi scored 44 runs. Asim Kazi, who came in next, also delivered an impactful performance with 32 runs.

However, Maharashtra needed 60 runs to win in the last 5 overs. At a stage when the game seemed to be going in Kerala's favour, Divyang Hinganekar single-handedly took the game away with his brilliant knock. He remained unbeaten on 43 runs off 18 balls, guiding Maharashtra to victory with one ball to spare. His innings included five fours and two sixes. Sijomon Joseph and Nidheesh took two wickets each for Kerala.