Vijay Hazare Trophy 2025 Round-Up: Pant, Axar tons help Delhi, Gujarat win

The Vijay Hazare Trophy 2025 round 5 action continued today with all teams back in play across multiple venues in the country. Uttar Pradesh and defending champions Karnataka extended their unbeaten streaks by winning their fifth match in a row, while Maharashtra registered the most resounding result of the round by dominating Mumbai in Jaipur. Rishabh Pant, who was earlier today announced as India’s back-up keeper for the ODI series vs New Zealand, guided Delhi to a clinical chase vs Services that pushed them back to the top of Group D with a strengthened net run rate.

 

Meanwhile, Axar Patel authored his first List A hundred, swinging momentum for Gujarat in a tense finish, while young Parth Vats announced himself with a defining all-round, match-winning effort for Haryana. 

Karnataka march on unbeaten

Karnataka showcased their growing maturity in white-ball cricket with a commanding 80-run win over Tripura at the Narendra Modi Stadium. After an early wobble in the batting order, Devdutt Padikkal absorbed pressure and built the innings with a calmness that allowed others to flourish around him. The team’s middle-overs approach mixed structure with bursts of aggression, ensuring the total kept climbing without frantic risks.

 

In the second half, the bowling unit executed clear plans — tightening lines whenever Tripura tried to accelerate, taking pace off cleverly, and striking each time a partnership looked threatening. Despite a brilliant hundred from Swapnil Singh, Tripura lost direction as Karnataka applied repeated breaks in momentum. The win meant Karnataka not only protected their unbeaten run in Group A but also delivered a performance that matched their ambitions, blending control and calculated power in equal measure.

UP maintains rhythm in Rajkot

Uttar Pradesh stayed on course in Group B with a composed 58-run win over Jammu & Kashmir, underlining their ability to shift gears under pressure. UP’s batting rebuild was anchored by Dhruv Jurel and Priyam Garg, who played with smart shot selection and intent rather than haste. The late-innings surge came through Rinku Singh and, especially, Sameer Rizvi, who counter-attacked with placement-driven power, clearing the boundary with timing more than brute force.

 

Rizvi’s unbeaten 80 symbolised a phase of domination that set J&K too steep a climb. In the chase, Parth Vats tried to steer J&K back into the contest, but UP’s spinners and seamers kept chipping away, bowling into the stumps and forcing errors whenever the required rate rose. Their victory ensured UP remained on 16 points with an NRR north of +0.460, reinforcing the idea that this UP side is built not just to chase or set totals but to sustain phases of pressure until the opposition blinks.

Vats shines for Haryana

Haryana pulled off a high-pressure 306-run chase against Odisha, powered by 21-year-old Parth Vats, whose all-round influence defined the contest. Earlier, Vats bowled with bite to restrict Odisha to 305/9, dismissing key batters at vital junctures. When Haryana began their chase disastrously at 14/3, Vats walked in not to swing but to steady. He rebuilt with purpose, rotating early and punishing only when the ball entered his arc. His unbeaten 157, laced with 13 fours and five sixes, became the spine of Haryana’s recovery. He then stitched a composed finishing stand with Anuj Thakral, ensuring Haryana crossed 309/6 in 48.4 overs with four wickets in hand and overs to spare. The performance marked a major milestone — Haryana back at the top tier of Group D with 16 points and rising NRR relevance, driven by a player who delivered calm, power and tactical clarity well beyond his years.

Maharashtra stuns Mumbai

Maharashtra recorded the biggest margin of the round by dismantling Mumbai by 128 runs at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium. Their 366/4 was built on clarity of role — top order to accumulate risk-free early, middle to accelerate in windows, and finishers to hit clean zones late. The chase asked too much of Mumbai too early.

 

Maharashtra’s bowlers responded with stump-to-stump discipline, pulling pace off cleverly and forcing risky strokes as partnerships tried to form. Mumbai folded for 238 in 42 overs, undone by a bowling plan that attacked the stumps and suffocated the boundary lanes whenever the batters tried to break free. The win ensured MAH moved to 12 points with a major NRR surge, while Mumbai’s campaign absorbed a body blow that highlighted the gulf between intent and execution on the day.

Pant’s revival powers Delhi back to the summit

Delhi returned to the top of Group D by brushing aside Services in Bengaluru, driven by Rishabh Pant’s timely rebound in form. Harshit Rana and Prince Yadav softened Services with disciplined bowling that forced a mid-innings collapse. Pant’s chase intent was aggressive but smart — rotating early, then targeting spin once set. His unbeaten 67 came alongside opener Priyansh Arya’s 72*, the pair sharing a fluent 85-plus stand that sealed 182/2 in 19.4 overs. The victory restored Delhi to 16 points with a boosted +0.803 NRR, reinforcing that Delhi’s fortunes swing when Pant balances aggression with timing windows rather than chasing every ball.

Axar hits first List A hundred

Axar Patel authored a breakthrough 130 off 111 balls to drag Gujarat from 99/5 to 318/9 in 50 overs, setting up a narrow seven-run win over Andhra. His innings was built in phases — a stabilising half-century first, before launching into boundary windows late. The 142-run sixth-wicket alliance with Vishal Jayswal (70) flipped Gujarat into ascendancy. Axar later backed his batting with tight bowling in the second innings, finishing with 2/27. The win kept Gujarat in the Group D race on 12 points but, more importantly, delivered a signature moment from a player increasingly shaping India’s all-round identity across formats.

Other results

Kerala hunted down 313 with just two wickets lost against Jharkhand, displaying top-order fluency and chase control. Bengal overpowered Assam by 85 runs in a bowling-led strangle, while Hyderabad crushed Chandigarh by 136 runs with tactical ruthlessness. Uttarakhand completed a clean seven-wicket chase of Goa’s 270, and Chhattisgarh edged past Himachal’s 320 by three wickets. Punjab hammered Sikkim by 10 wickets, sealing 81 in 6.2 overs, while Vidarbha thrashed Baroda by nine wickets. Rajasthan survived a tight 10-run finish against Tamil Nadu. Across centres, the round reshaped momentum curves, but a few performances — Vats, Padikkal, Patel and Pant — became the headlines that defined it.