Mushtaq Ali T20: Saha dazzles for Bengal; Gambhir takes Delhi home (Roundup)

Bengal wicketkeeper-batsman Wriddhiman Saha justified his selection to the national Test side for the one-off game against Bangladesh, by blasting a half-ton to guide his state side to a 10-wicket win over Assam in the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 cricket tournament here on Wednesday.

Chasing a modest 147 in the East zone match, Saha (74 not out) along with opener Sreevats Goswami (71 not out) comfortably took Bengal over the line with four overs to spare at the Eden Gardens here.

In another East zone tie at the same venue, Jharkhand slumped to their third straight loss in the tournament when they lost to Tripura by 24 runs.

Inspired by a 38-ball 74 from opener Udiyan Bose, Tripura went on to post a total of 192 before restricting Jharkhand to 168.

Meanwhile, after losing two matches in a row, Delhi finally managed to defeat Haryana by five wickets in the North Zone inter-state clash at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) Stadium in Dharamsala.

Skipper Gautam Gambhir ended his poor run by striking a 44-ball 61 to guide Delhi home with an over to spare in reply to Haryana's paltry total of 114.

In another tie at the same venue, Punjab edged past the Services by six runs. Electing to bat after winning the toss, Punjab scored 129 before restricting the opposition to 123 in their stipulated 20 overs.

At Nadaun, hosts Himachal Pradesh went down to Jammu and Kashmir by 18 runs at the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Stadium.

Himachal squandered a brilliant start with the ball as the match slipped from their hands during the chase, thanks to some poor shot selection and slow scoring rate.

In the West zone clashes, Mumbai defeated Saurashtra by five wickets at the Moti Bagh Stadium in Vadodara while Baroda clinched the tie against Gujarat by 15 runs at the Reliance Stadium.

Veteran all-rounder Abhishek Nayar stood out for Mumbai with an undefeated 47-ball 76 to overhaul Saurashtra's 175 with two balls remaining.

On the other hand, riding on Deepak Hooda's 51-ball 108, Baroda posted a mammoth 201 before restricting Gujarat to 186/7.

--IANS

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