SMAT 2021-22: Wagh four-for, Ranjane fifty ends TN's unbeaten streak
Goa stunned Tamil Nadu in the Elite Group A fixture of the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy in Lucknow on Monday.
Published : Nov 08, 2021 21:02 IST
Left-arm pacer Shrikant Wagh’s four-wicket haul and Shubham Ranjane’s unbeaten half-century (52, 42b, 3x4, 2x6) helped Goa stun Tamil Nadu by seven wickets in the Elite Group A Syed Mushtaq Ali match in Lucknow on Monday.
Electing to bowl first, the Goa bowlers pegged TN back during the middle overs to ensure they restricted the defending champions to just 136/9. After a steady start of 38/2 after the PowerPlay, Goa got three crucial wickets as TN slumped to 56/5 by the 11th over.
Sanjay (39) and M. Shahrukh Khan (26) came together for a 67-run stand for the sixth wicket. However, just when they were looking to accelerate, Wagh picked up three wickets in the 19th over.
Goa’s innings started poorly when debutant pacer P. Saravana Kumar removed openers Eknath Kerkar and Lakshay Garg bowled in the first over.
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Aditya Kaushik played positively as he quickly found a few boundaries off Kumar in the following over. Ranjane started strongly with a six down the ground and the duo added 66 for the third wicket.
After Kaushik's dismissal, Suyash Prabhudessai built on the platform in his quickfire unbeaten knock of 43 (24b, 1x4, 3x6) to take Goa home.
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The loss ended TN's unbeaten streak in the tournament since the last season. They, however, missed three key players on Monday -- B. Aparajith, Sandeep Warrier and T. Natarajan -- due to niggles.
It remains to be seen if the trio is available for the game against Punjab on Tuesday.
Currently, TN, Punjab and Maharashtra are tied on 12 points. Maharashtra takes on Goa on Tuesday, but if TN wins against Punjab, the defending champion will top the table as it has already defeated Maharashtra in the first match.
Brief scores
Elite A (Lucknow): Tamil Nadu 136/9 in 20 overs (Sanjay Yadav 38, Shrikant Wagh 4/36) lost to Goa 140/3 in 18.4 overs (Aditya Kaushik 41, Shubham Ranjane 52 n.o., Suyash Prabhudessai 43 n.o.).