Syed Mushtaq Ali T20: Andhra clinches thriller against Jharkhand

Two run-outs by wicketkeeper K.S. Bharath and two wickets for Y. Prithvi Raj in the closing stages helped Andhra register a 3-run victory over Jharkhand in the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 tournament at Mulapadu.

File Photo: Saurabh Tiwary's wicket in the penultimate over of the match allowed Andhra to clinch a 3-run victory against Jharkhand.

Andhra pulled off a thrilling, three-run win over Jharkhand in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy T-20 cricket championship league at Mulapadu Cricket Complex here on Thursday.

Andhra, electing to bat, posted 179 with opener M. Pranith (43, 17b, 6 x 4, 3 x 6), Ricky Bhui (38, 29b, 1 x 4, 3 x 6) and Karn Sharma (30, 15b, 2 x 4, 2 x 6) chipping in with useful contributions even as pacer Varun Aaron (three for 49) was the main wicket-taker for Jharkhand.

In reply, Jharkhand looked on course with Saurabh Tiwary (54, 32b, 5 x 4, 2 x 6) at the crease when the scoreline read 162 for six in 19th over before he was run out by wicketkeeper K. Srikar Bharat.

That proved to be decisive as Y. Prithvi Raj struck twice in the 20th over to send back Shahbaz Nadeem (1) and Monu (16). To the delight of Andhra players, Rahul Shukla was run-out again by the wicketkeeper to leave Jharkhand three runs short of the target.

Read: As it happened

This is Andhra’s second win in five matches while, Jharkhand suffered it’s first defeat in fifth game.

Opener Mayank Raghav’s century (103, 66b, 11 x 4, 5 x 6) went in vain for Manipur as Jammu & Kashmir scored an eight-wicket win in another match.

For J & K, this is the third win in six games while, Manipur suffered its fourth defeat in five matches.

In another match, Kerala notched up a thumping, 10-wicket win over Nagaland with openers Vishnu Vinod (53 not out, 38b, 4 x 4, 3 x 6) and Rohan S Kunnummal (51 not out, 36b, 8 x 4) batting with great freedom. This is it’s fourth win in five matches while, Nagaland suffered it’s fifth straight defeat.

The scores:

Andhra 179 in 19.5 overs (M. Pranith 43, Ricky Bhui 38, Karn Sharma 30, Shahbaz Nadeem three for 26, Varun Aaron three for 49) bt Jharkhand 176 in 19.5 overs (Saurabh Tiwary 54, Y. Prithvi Raj three for 28). Manipur 182 for six in 20 overs (Mayank Raghav 103, Yashpal Singh 51, Rasikh Salam three for 38) lost to J & K 184 for two in 17.1 overs (Shubham Khajuria 34, Jatin Wadhwan 59, Bandeep Singh 59 not out, Shubham Singh Pundir 30 not out). Nagaland 103 for eight in 20 overs (Rohit 49 not out, M.D. Nidheesh three for 17) lost to Kerala 105 for no loss in 12.2 overs (Vishnu Vinod 53 not out, R.S. Kunnummal 51 not out).