First-timers Mumbai and Himachal meet in final
The Hindu
Shreyas took his time before flexing his muscles, especially on the onside
Shreyas Iyer scored a magnificent half-century to guide Mumbai to a convincing five-wicket win over Vidarbha in the semifinals and get his team a place in the final of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy for the first time at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Thursday.
Mumbai will take on another first-timer Himachal, which outwitted a strong Punjab by 13 runs, in the summit clash on Saturday.
Electing to bat, Vidarbha progressed due to opener Atharva Taide (29, 22b, 3x4, 1x6) and Apporva Wankhede (34, 26b, 3x4, 2x6) even as the Mumbai bowlers made frequent dents.
Jitesh Sharma (46 n.o., 24b, 3x4, 3x6) switched gears at the right time, hitting three sixes in the last over, to get Vidarbha a fighting total.
Shams Mulani bowled accurately to scalp three batters.
After Mumbai lost skipper Ajinkya Rahane and Yashasvi Jaiswal for 31, Prithvi Shaw (34, 21b, 2x4, 3x6) and Shreyas (73, 44b, 7x4, 4x6) gathered 43 runs with the former displaying some well-timed shots.
Shreyas took his time before flexing his muscles, especially on the onside. He was severe on pacer Yash Thakur, plundering 19 runs, including a six and three fours, in the 14 th over.