The contest could have gone either way. Baroda floundered with the bat but their bowlers kept chipping away and gave Mumbai a near scare. In the end, Ajit Agarkar’s men huffed their way to a four-wicket win over Baroda in the Vijay Hazare Trophy inter-state west zone tournament at the Wankhede on Wednesday. Mumbai have garnered four points from the victory.
The domestic giants struggled in windy conditions against the two new balls before overhauling Baroda’s total of 183, with four overs to spare. Opener Sushant Marathe’s half-century laid the foundation of the chase before the talented Suryakumar Yadav guided Mumbai home with a crucial, unbeaten 38.
Mumbai started shakily, losing opener Ajinkya Rahane in the fifth over. Ambati Rayudu pouched Rahane’s square-cut at point, off seamer Murtuza Vahora. Wasim Jaffer took 16 balls to get off the mark. A direct hit from Kedar Devdhar ended his 20-ball innings, reducing Mumbai to 33 for two.
The ‘two new balls’ rule made it tougher for Mumbai. The Baroda bowlers benefited from the sea breeze too. Marathe, in the mean time, kept the singles coming and hit the odd boundary in between. Returning from an injury break, he completed a fighting half-century before edging Vahora to wicket-keeper Pinal Shah.
Earlier, Mumbai, who chose to field first, bowled with discipline to restrict Baroda to 183. Left-arm spinner Ankit Chavan came up with a fine performance with three wickets, while Agarkar and Dhawal Kulkarni took two wickets each. Ambati Rayudu was the highest scorer with 69 in the Baroda innings, while Yusuf Pathan made a 57-ball 30.
