Urvil Patel's Sixes and Centuries Keep Flowing

In a stunning display of power hitting, Urvil Patel of Gujarat showcased his batting prowess once again, scoring an unbeaten 115 off just 41 balls to lead his team to an emphatic eight-wicket victory over Uttarakhand in a Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy match in Indore. With this win, Gujarat climbed to the top of Group C with five victories in six matches, solidifying their position as a strong contender in the tournament.

Urvil got to his century on Tuesday off just 38 balls - his second consecutive T20 hundred - as Gujarat made light work of Uttarakhand's total of 182, getting there with 41 balls to spare. Urvil hit eight fours and 11 sixes in his innings. Along the way, he overtook Hardik Pandya to be the tournament's highest six-hitter (25) at this stage.

Red-hot Saurashtra flex batting muscle again

Hot on Gujarat's heels are Saurashtra, who have joined them on 20 points in Group C. Saurashtra followed their 266 for 6 against Baroda with 235 for 5 in their 59-run win over Tamil Nadu on Tuesday, courtesy three half-centuries: Harvik Desai's 55, Ruchit Ahir's 56 and Sammar Gajjar's 55 not out.

Ahir was particularly impressive, hitting his second straight T20 half-century in just his third game. Desai, too, carried on from where he left off against Baroda (where he made a 39-ball 76). Tamil Nadu were at no stage up to challenging the target as they finished 64 short with Chiraj Jani and Dharmendrasinh Jadeja among the wickets.

It was a fourth defeat in six games for Tamil Nadu, who won the championship in successive seasons, 2020-21 and 2021-22.

More to follow…