Vijay Hazare Trophy Final Highlights: RAJ 257 all out v HAR 287/8; Haryana edges Rajasthan to win its first VHT by 30 runs

Anshul returns for a spell. Wicket!! Arafat lofts a length ball straight to deep square. Another one bites the dust. 

Arafat Khan c Yuvraj Singh b Anshul Kamboj 1(2)

Khaleel is the number 11 batter. WICKET!! Khaleel is castled by Anshul and Haryana has won the Vijay Hazare Trophy for the first time in history!!

Khaleel Ahmed b Anshul Kamboj 0(5)

Chahar comes down the track to Tewatia but switches to a sweep to fine leg for a single. Four!! Slightly short from Tewatia, Aniket pulls it through mid wicket for four. Huge appeal for LBW as Tewatia bowls the slider. Aniket was caught at the crease. Umpire says no but Haryana review immediately. Umpires call on wickets and Aniket survives. 

Aniket is given out LBW immediately after, his turn to go for the review. Was extremely late in prodding his front forward to defend. Wickets missing!! Aniket survives again!! Wicket!!! Aniket perishes at the third attempt. Went for a slog sweep that went straight up and Tewatia completes the catch.

Aniket Choudhary c and b Rahul Tewatia 4(5)

What a dramatic over!!

Appeals for LBW as Chahar moves across in an attempt to flick. Haryana takes the review. Looks like it was going down leg. Ball tracking agrees and Chahar survives. Slightly wide from Harshal, Chahar cuts to deep point for a single. Wicket!! Ajay Kukna pulls a short ball straight to Nishant at deep square. Third wicket for Harshal!

Kukna Ajay Singh c Nishant Sindhu b Harshal Patel 8(8)

Aniket in at 9.

Tewatia to continue. A run out referral at the strikers end but looks the batter just made his crease. Chahar brings out the sweep, only gets a single. Four from the over. 

HUGE WICKET!!! Harshal bowls a slower one outside off, Kunal attempts a lofted shot over cover but finds the fielder in the deep. Haryana almost there it would seem. 

KS Rathore c Amit Rana b Harshal Patel 79(65)

Ajay Kukna in at 8. Four!! Harshal manages to get the outside edge but it runs past the keeper for a boundary. Two dots to finish the over. Five from it. 

Tewatia into the attack. Chahar gets down on one knee and sweep a full ball to deep fine where the fielder puts in a dive to save two. Kunal goes for the reverse sweep to a ball outside off, misses. Just five from the over. 

Harshal with his seventh. An excellent over from Harshal under the circumstances, despite a no ball full toss conceded. Three from the over. 

Six!! Rahul Chahar leaps down the ground and lofts Amit over the midwicket boundary for six. Four!! Kunal steps down now, manages to loft it over the cover fielder and it races down for four. Six!! Kunal smashes another one over the mid wicket for another six. SEVENTEEN from the over!

Harshal continues. Targets Kunal’s pads. The keeper-batter has been grimacing with some discomfort in his legs, especially while running between the wickets. Just four from the over.

Amit Rana into the attack. Kunal slogs it over mid wicket but the fielder does well to restrict it to a couple. A quick single follows to third man. Chahar clips a full ball on the stumps to fine leg for a couple. Seven from the over. 

Harshal back into the attack. Wicket!!! Slower ball from Harshal, Abhijeet looked to loft it over the infield, doesn’t get the timing right and Sumit at mid off pulls of an excellent catch. Another twist in the tale!

Abhijeet Tomar c Sumit Kumar b Harshal Patel 106(129)

Rahul Chahar in at 7. Just a single from the over. 

Anshul returns for a spell as well. Six!! Anshul goes short, Kunal goes for the pull shot, has just enough to beat the fielder in the deep. Ten from the over. 

Sumit returns for a spell. Can he pick a few more wickets and break the back of the chase. Not the ideal start as he oversteps first ball. Six and a century! Abhijeet lofts the length ball over the square leg fence to take full toll of the free hit. A 121-ball century for the opening batter. Four!! Fifty for Kunal as well! Length ball on off stump, Kunal lofts it over cover to the boundary. Hundred run partnership up in this over as well!

Kunal goes for a big heave against Anshul, misses the ball completely. Slightly short outside off, cut to deep point for a single. Just two from the over.

A six-run over by Tewatia. Both Abhijeet and Kunal looking pretty comfortable out there in the middle. 

A ten-run over by Amit. Kunal hit six on the first ball and then the duo four more runs. Rajasthan is very much into the chase now. 

Abhijeet is nearing his hundred now. He has entered his 90s. Kunal giving him good company. 

Tewatia back into the attack. Four!! Kunal brings out the reverse sweep to get the full ball to the boundary. Good comeback from Tewatia. Just five from the over. 

Harshal continues. Six!! Length delivery is lofted over square leg for six by Kunal. Four!! Two fours to finish the over off from Abhijeet. Rajasthan very much in the game now.

Harshal back into the attack. Stops the flow of runs over the last three overs. Just a single conceded. 

Amit continues from the other end. Six runs from the over. 

Sindhu continues. Four!! Slightly wide, Abhijeet cuts it past point for four. Six!! Full this time, Kunal slog sweeps it over midwicket for six. 

Six!! Slightly short, Abhijeet pulls it over deep mid wicket for six. Twenty off the last two overs.

Chance!! Abhijeet defends to the leg side and sets off for a single. The keeper races to it and has a shy at the stumps but misses. Replays show Kunal would have been short of his crease. 

Amit continues his tight spell, just three from his over. Hundred up for Rajasthan.

Tewatia continues. Four!! Too short to Abhishek and the batter pulls it through midwicket for a boundary. 

Amit continues with his second. Just three singles from the over. 

Amit Rana into the attack. Tight lines from the off spinner sees only four runs conceded. Fifty up for Abhijeet Tomar. The opener will remain crucial if Rajasthan has any chance of chasing this down.

Wicket!! Karan Lamba departs after a good stand. Full on the stumps, Karan missed his flick to the leg side and sees his stumps knocked back. 

Karan Lamba b Rahul Tewatia 20(31)

Tewatia and Sindhui bowling in tandem now. Four!! Tewatia overpitches and Abhijeet punches it straight past him for a boundary. Ten off the last two overs.

Harshal continues. Four! Slightly wide, Abhijeet looks to cut but gets an outside edge that runs past third man to the boundary. Four!! Another late cut that runs to the third man for a boundary. Fifty partnership up between the two. Eleven runs from the over.

Sindhu continues. Appeal for LBW but was going down leg. Replays suggest it pitched outside leg as well. Just three from the over.

Harshal Patel into the attack. Bowling on middle and leg allowing the batters to turn it leg side for easy strike rotation. Four from the over. Fifty up for Rajasthan!

Nishant Sindhu into the attack. On the mark first up. Little bit off turn after pitching on leg stump. Just the three from the over. 

Anshul with his sixth over. Four!! Short and wide, cut beyond backward point for a boundary. Seven runs from the over. 

Four!! Sumit guilty of bowling wide again, Karan punches it for another boundary. An appeal for a strangle down leg but the umpire says no. Looks like it brushed the thigh pad. 

Extra bounce for Anshul. Abhijeet is rapped on the gloves. Four!! Some width offered and Abhijeet gets it through the offside for another boundary.

Four!! Was turning out to be another tight over from Sumit. But he gives some width on the fifth ball and Karan takes full toll by punching it through the off side for four. 

Anshul with his fourth. Four!! Too full and straight, Abhijeet drives through midwicket for a boundary. A tough chance at gully is put down.. Anshul managed to square the batter up and the ball just about carried.

Wicket!!! Sumit traps Hooda in front and the umpire raises his finger. Hooda goes for the review. Looks like it could be missing leg. Ball tracking shows umpires call on hitting. Hooda has to go. Has some words for the umpire as he leaves. 

Hooda lbw b Sumit Kumar 0(1)

Karan Lamba in at 5. Swinging away from the right hander, gets an edge that runs down to third man.

Deepak Hooda in at 4. Anshul Kamboj maintaining the line outside off stump, Abhijeet is happy to shoulder arms. Angles one into the body this time, solidly defended. Just a wide from the over. 

Wicket!! Lomror’s short stay at the crease after edging a short of a length ball back to the keeper. Sumit gets his second.

Lomror c Rohit Parmod Sharma b Sumit Kumar 2(8)

Anshul more shorter in length compared to Sumit but is still getting a hint of movement. A direct hit at the strikers end but the batter was home, the ricochets helps him get a single eventually. Three runs from the over. 

Sumit with the second over. Bit of movement into the left hander, Ram is rapped on the pads but an inside edge saves him. Wicket!! Movement in again, fuller and Ram gets an inside edge that ricochets off the pad and onto the stumps. 

Ram Mohan Chouhan b Sumit Kumar 1(7)

Anshul with the new ball. Abhijeet and Ram open for Rajasthan. Short of a length on the body, Abhijeet is beaten on the tuck. On the pads, tucked to deep fine for a single to open the scoring. Two runs from the first over. 

Four!! Slightly short and wide, Sumit cuts fiercely through cover for a boundary. Six!! Full on the stumps, Sumit moves across and lofts it over fine leg for six. Four!! Short again, pulled through mid wicket for another boundary. Productive final over for Haryana. It ends up on 287 in its 50 overs.

Four!! Slightly short, Sumit moves his front foot away and pulls it through the gap between long on and deep mid for four. Wicket!! Harshal tries to sneak in a bye from the non-strikers, is sent back and finds himself short of the crease. 

Harshal Patel run out (KS Rathore/Khaleel Ahmed) 2(2)

Six runs from the over. 

Four!! Tewatia tries to loft a short ball outside off, doesn’t get the timing right but gets enough to get it over short third for a boundary. Wicket!! Aniket picks up his fourth. Length ball, Tewatia looked to loft it over the leg side but manages to find deep square. 

Rahul Tewatia c (sub)Himanshu Nehra b Aniket Choudhary 24(18)

Four!! Low full toss on the stumps, driven through the off side for a boundary. Spoils the good start to the over from Arafat. Four!! Slower ball on the stumps, Tewatia guides it through the gap between long on and deep mid and gets a boundary.

Khaleel with his eighth. Full toss on the stumps, Tewatia turns it leg side but finds the fielder. Six!! Full toss outside off this time, Tewatia lofts it over point for a six. Four!! Half volley outside off, Tewatia lofts it over mid off for a boundary. 14 from the over. 

Wicket!! Arafat removes Rohit! Short ball, pulled to deep fine where the substitute fielder pulls off a blinder. 

Rohit Parmod Sharma c (sub)Yash Kothari b Arafat Khan 20(24)

Sumit joins Tewatia at the crease. Four from the over. 

Six!! Kukna has been very economical but misses his length and Sindhu launches it over midwicket for six.

Wicket!! Chahar strikes. Sindhu attempted to go big but doesn’t get the required distance. Good short innings from the south paw.

Nishant Sindhu c Abhijeet Tomar b Rahul Chahar 29(22)

Six!! Sindhu lofts a length ball over the midwicket fence for six, ruining what was turning out to be a decent over from Khaleel. 

Four!! Rohit Sharma gets his first boundary, heaving a short of length ball over the leg side for four. Appeals for a caught behind the following ball. RAJ take a review but Ultra edge shows a flat line when ball passes bat. 200 up for the batting team.

Four!! Was turning out to be a tight over from Deepak Hooda but Nishant hits the last ball through covers for a boundary.

Aniket continues. Four!! Short on off stump, Sindhu lofts it over mid on for a boundary. Five from the over. 

Wicket!! Another one for Aniket. Full on the stumps to Menaria, looked to pick it up over the leg side, finds the fielder at deep mid. 

Menaria c Arafat Khan b Aniket Choudhary 70(96)

Nishant Sindhu in at 6. Two from the over. 

Four!! Chahar errs in line. Full outside leg stump, turned behind for a boundary. Four!! Outside off, Chahar bowls it full with the mid off in the circle. Menaria lofts it over his head for four more. Ten from the over. 

Aniket back into the attack. Wicket!! Full on middle stump, Ankit looks to flick it to the leg side, finds the stumps broken behind him. He goes for 88.

Ankit Kumar b Aniket Choudhary 88(91)

Dropped!! Rohit Sharma tries to pull a short ball, only manages a top edge but the fielder at the deep drops a sitter. Four!! Short and wide, Menaria punches through the covers for a boundary. Aniket is fuming. 

Six!! Ankit makes room against Kukna and lofts one over long off for six. Eleven runs from the over. 

Chahar again. Releases some of the pressure with a tight over. Just two from it. 

Fifty for Menaria! Punches a full ball from Kukna down to log on for a single. Has taken his time in this innings. Haryana needs a push on from here to post a big score. 

Chahar back into the attack. Tight over, just the three from it. 

Four!! Too full and wide from Hooda, Menaria creams it past the cover fielder for a boundary. Shorter in length but still wide, Menaria cuts through square leg for another four. 100 partnership up between the two.

Chance! Ankit almost perishes trying to pull a short of a length ball from Kukna. The ball finds the leading edge but it falls well short of the fielder running in from long on.

The spinners have managed to restrict the batters over the last few overs. Kukna and Hooda have ensured no boundaries are conceded. Menaria guilty off playing too many dot balls, will hope to get a move on soon. 

Four!! Full on off stump, Ankit makes room and plays an inside-out lofted shot over covers for another boundary. 

Deepak Hooda into the attack now, targetting the left handed Menaria. Rajasthan in need of an urgent breakthrough.

Four!! Kookna misses his length. Goes short, Ankit rocks back and pulls through midwicket for another boundary. 100 up for Haryana.

Four!! Quick outside off stump, Menaria opens his bat face and guides it past third man for another boundary. Five from the over. 

Four!! Chahar over pitches, Ankit lofts it over extra cover for a boundary. Six runs from the over. 

Four!! Arafat continues to leak boundaries from his end. Short on off stump, not high enough, pulled through mid wicket for a boundary. Ten off the last two overs. 

Arafat back into the attack. Four!! Length ball on the stumps, Ankit jams the bat down and the edge runs to third man for a boundary. Four!! Arafat goes short, Ankit manages to get a faint edge that runs to the boundary for four more. A double to deep square brings up Fifty for Ankit!

Rahul Chahar into the attack. Short, cut to short third where Khaleel does well to put in a dive and prevent a boundary. Five from the over. 

Four!! Short of a length outside off, Menaria dabs it through the gully region and the ball races away to the boundary. Six from the over.

Couple of tight overs from Aniket and Khaleel. Just the four runs from the last two.

Four!! Overpitched on the pads, Ankit drives it past mid on for four. Four!! Full outside off, driven through the covers for the second boundary of the over. Fifty up for Haryana.

Aniket manages to find the batter’s top edge, falls safe in front of the deep fine fielder who does well to prevent the boundary. An appeal for a run out in the strikers end as well. Replays show the batter has made his ground. Wicket! Short of a length outside off stump, Himanshu tries to cut, edges to the keeper. 

H Rana c KS Rathore b Aniket Choudhary 10(23)

Ashok Menaria in at 4. 

Khaleel returns for his third. Maintains the line outside off stump, moving further away with the angle. Five off the over despite a no ball. 

Aniket continues. Four!! Slightly short on the hips, swivel pulls it past square leg for a boundary. Six runs from the over. 

Four!! Short of a length from Arafat, Himanshu stands tall and punches it through the covers for four. Dropped! Himanshu mistimes his hook, the ball flies straight to third man where Khaleel makes a mess of the catch. Four!! Short and wide again, cut through the offside for another boundary.

Aniket Choudhary into the attack. Squares the batter up first ball. Tight over to start, just the single from it. 

Four!! Slightly wide from Arafat, Ankit cuts it past point and it runs away to the boundary. Four!! Overcompensates in line and Ankit tucks it to fine leg for another boundary. Four!! Full on the pads, Ankit flicks it past deep square for another boundary.

On the pads from Khaleel, flicked to deep fine for an easy single. Khaleel keeping it short of a length. Hardly any movement today. One from the over.

Arafat Khan with the second over. Wicket!! Yuvraj perishes after edging one to the keeper. Extra bounce for Arafat and a hint of swing as well. 

Yuvraj Singh c KS Rathore b Arafat Khan 1(7)

Himanshu Rana in at 3. Wicket Maiden!

Khaleel with the new ball in his hand. Yuvraj Singh and Ankit Kumar open for Haryana.

Khaleel starts off with a wide outside off. A full ball on the stumps to follow, defended. Another wide, this time down leg side from Khaleel. Three runs from the first over. 

HARYANA: Yuvraj Singh, Ankit Kumar, Himanshu Rana, Nishant Sindhu, Rohit Parmod Sharma(w), Rahul Tewatia, Ashok Menaria(c), Sumit Kumar, Harshal Patel, Amit Rana, Anshul Kamboj

RAJASTHAN: Abhijeet Tomar, Ram Mohan Chouhan, Mahipal Lomror, Deepak Hooda(c), Karan Lamba, Kunal Singh Rathore(w), Rahul Chahar, Aniket Choudhary, Arafat Khan, Khaleel Ahmed, Kukna Ajay Singh

Haryana wins the toss and opts to bat first.

Haryana: Yuvraj Singh, Ankit Kumar, Himanshu Rana, Nishant Sindhu, Rohit Parmod Sharma(w), Rahul Tewatia, Ashok Menaria(c), Sumit Kumar, Harshal Patel, Amit Rana, Anshul Kamboj, Aman Kumar, Kapil Hooda, Mayank Shandilya

Rajasthan: Abhijeet Tomar, Ram Mohan Chouhan, Mahipal Lomror, Deepak Hooda(c), Karan Lamba, Kunal Singh Rathore(w), Rahul Chahar, Aniket Choudhary, Arafat Khan, Khaleel Ahmed, Kukna Ajay Singh, Sahil Dhiwan, Salman Khan, Yash Kothari, Samarpit Joshi, Manav Suthar

About a week ago, a final between Haryana and Rajasthan, with no limited-overs titles to show for between them, would have seemed a distant possibility. After they set up semifinal contests with Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, who have clinched a combined 14 white-ball titles, that prospect would have only dimmed.

But after defying expectations and flipping the script with hard-fought wins in the semifinals, neighbours Haryana and Rajasthan will lock horns in the title clash of the Vijay Hazare Trophy at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium here on Saturday.

With both sides unbeaten in the tournament, Haryana and Rajasthan’s horizons will converge in a clash of equals. A swap in allegiances will also add much-needed spice and intrigue to the finale of a competition being held under the shadow of a frenetic international calendar and India’s World Cup final defeat.

- Dhruva Prasad

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Vijay Hazare Trophy 2023: Haryana and Rajasthan to fight it out for title after defying expectations

After defying expectations and flipping the script with hard-fought wins in the semifinals, neighbours Haryana and Rajasthan will lock horns in the final of the Vijay Hazare Trophy in Rajkot on Saturday.

The Vijay Hazare Trophy final between Haryana and Rajasthan will be live streamed via the Jio Cinema app and website. The match starts at 1:30 pm IST.