Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, Group A preview: Punjab the team to beat once again as domestic T20 tournament starts Saturday

Shami will mark his return to the national T20 tournament after more than eight years.

FILE PHOTO: Punjab’s Abhishek Sharma during a practice session on the eve of the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 trophy final in 2023. | Photo Credit: SHIV KUMAR PUSHPAKAR / The Hindu

Mohammed Shami will continue to make progress towards entirely regaining his bowling rhythm when Bengal faces defending champion Punjab in Group A‘s first-round match of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy at the Saurashtra Cricket Association stadium on Saturday.

Shami, who played his first professional game after nearly a year-long injury hiatus in Bengal’s Ranji Trophy match against Madhya Pradesh last week, will mark his return to the national T20 tournament after more than eight years.

Sudip Gharami-led Bengal will face a tough challenge against Abhishek Sharma and Co., who look favourite to defend the title with the likes of Arshdeep Singh, Ramandeep Singh, Nehal Wadhera, and Naman Dhir in the squad.

Punjab hit 114 sixes last edition - the most by any team in the tournament’s history. Its aggressive style combined with batting depth made it the team to beat last season, and with a similar core, defeating Punjab will once again prove to be a tough challenge.

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Bengal will hope Abishek Porel continues his IPL 2024 form and the rest of the batters provide able support from the other end. Apart from Shami, spin all-rounder Shahbaz Ahmed, who made his T20I debut in 2023, will look to make a significant mark and hope to get a call from the national setup.

A team that could deter Punjab and Bengal’s campaign will be Madhya Pradesh, led by Rajat Patidar and supported by Venkatesh Iyer and Avesh Khan. The trio has had plenty of success in IPL through the years and will look to replicate similar performances for its domestic side to clinch the silverware for the first time.

But the journey won’t be easy for the said teams since Hyderabad, led by Tilak Varma, and Mahipal Lomror’s Rajasthan aren’t easy to nudge away with some solid domestic performers at their disposal.

Like Assam’s rise last year, the T20 format could help Bihar, Mizoram, and Meghalaya display their potential in the domestic circuit and help the teams garner more experience.