Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy: All-round Mumbai beat MP to clinch 2nd title
Mumbai leaned on their collective batting strength to subdue a spirited Madhya Pradesh by five wickets and clinch the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
Mumbai were stretched on more than one occasion during the chase of 175, a target MP built around skipper Rajat Patidar’s fluent unbeaten 81, on a slightly tacky pitch, but eventually they reached 180/5 in 17.5 overs.
This is Mumbai’s second SMAT title, after winning it in 2022, while MP’s wait for a maiden trophy prolonged to another season.
After a brief period of lull, Suryakumar Yadav (48, 35b, 4x4, 3x6) reactivated his run-making ways and added 52 runs for the third wicket with Ajinkya Rahane (37, 30b, 4x4).
It helped Mumbai to recover from the early dismissals of Prithvi Shaw and skipper Shreyas Iyer, both of them falling to rather causal shots.
Just when it seemed that the two veteran batters would carry Mumbai home, Rahane and Suryakumar got out.
At 129/5 in 14.4 overs, Mumbai needed 46 runs but any worries were soon eased by the big-hitting Suryansh Shedge (36 not out, 15b, 3x4, 3x6) and Atharva Ankolekar (16 not out, 6b, 2x6) who knocked off the remaining runs without much fuss in a little over three overs.
Earlier, Patidar shone brightly while hammering his fifth fifty of this tournament. The right-hander, who was retained by the Royal Challengers Bengaluru, entertained 15,000 spectators.
Brief scores: MP: 174/8 in 20 overs (Patidar 81*, Senapati 23; Shardul 2/41, Dias 2/32); Mumbai: 180/5 in 17.5 overs (Suryakumar 48, Rahane 37, Shedge 36*; Tripuresh 2/34).
