Tamil Nadu were the team to beat before the tournament started, and the way they defeated Karnataka in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, it seemed like the limited overs format was theirs to rule. On this pleasant Sunday morning, when they walked out to play the finale of the Vijay Hazare Trophy against Himachal Pradesh, perhaps that was expected again.
But against all the odds, HP rose up to the occasion and delivered a stunning performance, helping themselves win their first-ever domestic trophy in Indian cricket. Things started working their way the moment they chose to bowl first and got some early wickets.
The centurion in the semifinal, Baba Aparajith, was dismissed in the first over of the match. They had lost four wickets before the 15th over was done, with Jagadeesan, Sai Kishore and Murugan Ashwin walking back to the pavilion without any major contribution.
Dinesh Karthik was joined by Baba Indrajith in the middle, and the duo started consolidating the innings. Their partnership provided TN some firepower, with both players not taking a lot of time to get to their half-centuries. Karthik went all-out against the Himachal bowlers and hit some towering sixes en route to a sensational hundred, shortly after which the duo completed 200 runs for the fifth wicket.
Indrajith fell for a well-made 71-ball 80, and Karthik followed his path scoring 116 runs. Shahrukh Khan’s 21-ball 42 made life a lot easier in the end, as Tamil Nadu mounted 314 runs before getting bowled out in the final over. Pankaj Jaiswal returned with four wickets for Himachal, whilst skipper Rishi Dhawan got three crucial scalps.
Shubham Arora had a decent tournament until now but saved the knock of a lifetime for the final. After a fifty partnership alongside Prashant Chopra, Tamil Nadu fought back with two quick wickets of Chopra and Digvijay Rangi. Spinners Sai Kishore and Washington Sundar provided these breakthroughs for the side. Murugan Ashwin too joined the act a little later, dismissing Nikhil Ganga.
Post that, it was one-way traffic until the very end. Arora did not allow bowlers to settle down and kept getting the boundaries regularly. He added a fantastic partnership next to Amit Kumar, who anchored a great run-chase for the side and as he got to his fifty, whilst Arora completed a terrific hundred.
Just when Himachal were threatening to run away, Baba Aparajith dismissed Amit Kumar after he had added 74 runs off 79 deliveries. But that wicket only accelerated the process as Rishi Dhawan walked out with an intent to finish the game in style. The captain chipped in with a 23-ball 41, which included five fours and 1 six before bad light stopped play.
Himachal Pradesh had scored 299 runs for the loss of four wickets at this point and needed 16 runs in 15 balls. The game never resumed, and they were crowned champions as they were 11 runs ahead of the par total according to VJD method (288). Arora’s unbeaten 136 got him player of the match award.
Brief Scores
Tamil Nadu: 314 all out in 49.4 overs (Karthik 116, Indrajith 80; Jaiswal 4/59)
Himachal Pradesh: 299/4 in 47.3 overs (Arora 136*, Kumar 74, Dhawan 42*)
Himachal Pradesh won by 11 runs (VJD method)
