Vijay Hazare Trophy: Rohit Rayudu, Tilak Varma hit tons for Hyderabad; Rahane, Kotian guide Mumbai to victory

New Delhi:  Rohit Rayudu and Tilak Varma slammed impressive centuries to set up Hyderabad’s 17-run win over Himachal Pradesh while skipper Ajinkya Rahane struck a half-century and Tanush Kotian claimed 4 for 31 to help Mumbai overcome Bengal in Vijay Hazare Trophy matches at various venues in the country on Saturday.

In New Delhi, Rohit Rayudu and Tilak Varma slammed impressive centuries to set up Hyderabad’s 17-run win over Himachal Pradesh via VJD method in their Group A match.

Opener Rayudu struck 156 off 144 balls (12×4; 8×6) while one-down Varma remained unbeaten on 132 off 106 deliveries (10×4; 3×6) as Hyderabad blasted 360 for 3 in 50 overs on being asked to bat.

The duo figured in a 123-run partnership for the second wicket to frustrate the Himachal bowlers.

In response, Himachal reached 335/9 in 48 overs with Amit Kumar hitting a 98-ball 103 while opener Prashant Chopra scored an even-ball 70 in the match impacted by inclement weather.

Meanwhile, at Ranchi, off-spinner Tanush Kotian claimed a career-best 4/31 with his off-spin as Mumbai bowlers blew away the Bengal batting line-up. Fellow spinner Shams Mulani claimed 2/14. pacers Tushar Desphande (2/23) and Mohit Avasthi (1/29) alse figured in the wicket-takers list as Mumbai skittled out Bengal for a meager 121 in 31.3 overs.

In response, Rahane played a skipper’s knock of 59 from 72 balls (6×4, 2×6) as Mumbai chased down the target in 30.2 overs.

Also at Ranchi, Maharashtra defeated Railways by seven wickets with opener Ruturaj Gaikwad slamming an unbeaten 124. He and Rahul Tripathi (75) raised an opening partnership of 165 as Maharashtra chased down the modest target of 219 with 70 balls to spare against Railways.

Railways had reached 218/8 in 50 overs with Shivam Chaudhary scoring 46 and allrounder Karn Sharma adding 40. Shamshuzama Kazi was the top bowler for Maharashtra with 2/26. In response, Maharashtra reached 219/3 in 38.2 overs thanks to Ruturaj Gaikwad (124 not out) and Rahul Tripathi 75.

In other matches, Assam beat Rajasthan by 143 runs in Group B; Karanata outplayed Meghalaya by 115 runs; Delhi defeated Vidarbha by five wickets; Jharkhand got the better of Sikkim by 193 runs, Ranji champions Saurashtra thrashed Chandigarh by seven wickets and Uttar Pradesh beat Tripura by 83 runs in a Group A clash played in New Delhi.

–IANS