New Delhi [India], December 24 : Delightful centuries from India's ODI-exclusive legends Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli on return to the domestic circuit and a stroke-filled, explosive 84-ball 190 by Vaibhav Suryavanshi were the highlights of the Vijay Hazare Trophy (VHT) opening day, as a massive 22 centuries were scored to start off the tournament with a bang, with batters eating a massive hole into the record books with their efforts.
Suryavanshi's 84-ball 190 against Arunachal Pradesh made him the youngest List-A centurion ever at the age of 14, while Virat's 101-ball 131 guided Delhi to a four-wicket win in Bengaluru, and Rohit's masterclass 155* in just 94 balls took Mumbai to the finishing line against Sikkim.
In Mumbai's clash against Sikkim at Jaipur's Sawai Mansingh Stadium, people chanted endlessly for the 'Hitman' as after Sikkim posted 236/7 with their keeper-batter Ashish Thapa top-scoring with 87-ball 79, consisting of eight fours, Rohit shaved off a massive chunk of the target himself, with a majestic 94 ball 155*, consisting of 18 fours and nine sixes and runs scored at a strike rate of 164.89, with Angkrish Raghuvanshi (38 in 58 balls, with four boundaries) and Musheer Khan (27* in 26 balls, with two fours) getting to enjoy the festivities from the best seat in the house, standing at the non-striker's end for the most part.
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Moving to Bengaluru, after Delhi opted to bowl first, Ricky Bhui's 105-ball 122 (with 11 fours and seven sixes) posed to Delhi a stiff target of 299 runs, with pacer Simarjeet Singh's fifer being the highlight as Andhra Pradesh scored 298/8 in 50 overs. After Arpit Rana's early dismissal, Virat, who struck 14 fours and three sixes in his chanceless knock, had partnerships with a young Priyansh Arya (74 in 44 balls, with seven fours and five sixes) and Nitish Rana (77 in 55 balls, with nine fours and two sixes) as Delhi completed the chase with four wickets and almost 12 overs in hand. Skipper Rishabh Pant (5) endured a tough outing.
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During his knock, Virat became the second Indian after Sachin Tendulkar to complete 16,000 List-A runs and struck his 58th List-A ton.
However, the record-breaking pillage of runs during the Plate Group clash between Bihar and Arunachal Pradesh left fans stunned. Suryavanshi's century came in just 36 balls, posting the second-fastest List A ton by an Indian. His 190 run knock had 16 fours and five sixes, with a strike rate of above 226. His skipper Sakibul Jani (128* in 40 balls, with 10 fours and 12 sixes) shared the spotlight with the fastest List-A ton by an Indian. The hat-trick of centuries was completed courtesy of Ayush Loharuka (116 in 56 balls, with 11 fours and eight sixes) as Bihar posted 574/6, the highest total in List A cricket history. A helpless AP crumbled to heaps for 177/10 in 42.1 overs.
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The domestic platform continued to provide drama and records aplenty during the Group A clash between recently-crowned Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy champions Jharkhand and defending champions, Karnataka. A 33-ball ton by Ishan Kishan, second-fastest by an Indian in List A, a total of 125 in just 39 balls, with seven fours and 14 sixes, continued the wicketkeeper-batter's red-hot form. Virat Singh (88 in 68 balls, with eight fours and four sixes) and Kumar Kushagra (63 in 47 balls, with three fours and five fours) also continued their purple patch, taking Jharkhand to 412/9, with Abhilash Shetty (4/72) being Karnataka's top bowler.
The run-chase was a well-paced one, with opener Devdutt Padikkal (147 in 118 balls, with 10 fours and seven sixes) dictating the game. Skipper Mayank Agarwal (54 in 34 balls, with 10 fours), Abhinav Manohar (56* in 32 balls, with eight fours and a six) and Dhruv Prabhakar (40* in 22 balls, with six fours and a six) chipped in with explosive cameos as Karnataka completed the second-highest chase in List A cricket after the famous 435 run chase by South Africa against Australia 20 years back.
Tamil Nadu, powered by Pradosh Paul (73 in 79 balls, with six fours and a six), skipper N Jagadeesan (67 in 91 balls, with six fours and a six) and Sai Sudharsan (48 in 48 balls, with nine fours) posted 310/7, which proved to be 101 too many for Puducherry, who slipped to 209 all out courtesy a four-fer from pacer Gurjanpreet Singh.
The Group D clash between Odisha and Saurashtra was also the one for books as Odisha opener Swastik Samal (212 in 169 balls, with 21 fours and eight sixes) smashed the joint-fourth highest score in the tournament (with N Jagadeesan's 277 being the highest score against Arunachal Pradesh in 2022) and overall eighth double ton in VHT history, to take his side to 345/6, with skipper Biplab Samantray (100 in 91 balls, with seven fours and three sixes) also chipping a brilliant century. Saurashtra pulled off another massive chase of the day in 48.5 overs with five wickets in hand, with Sammar Gajjar (132* in 118 balls, with 12 fours and three sixes) and Chirag Jani (86 in 55 balls, with 10 fours and two sixes) playing standout knocks.
The Group D clash between Punjab and Maharashtra was also a star-studded one, with international/IPL faces featuring. After Maharashtra opted to bowl first, the top-order of Prabhsimran Singh (60 in 77 balls, with seven fours and a six), Abhishek Sharma (48 in 45 balls, with six fours and two sixes), Anmolpreet Singh (85 in 78 balls, with four boundaries and three sixes) and Naman Dhir (97 in 78 balls, with seven fours and four sixes) scoring big and taking Punjab to 347/6 in 50 overs.
Maharashtra started off the chase well with a 88-run opening stand between Prithvi Shaw (46 in 39 balls, with six fours and a six) and Arshin Kulkarni (37 in 30 balls, with seven fours). Skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad (1) had an off day. Knocks from Ramakrishna Ghosh (73 in 73 balls, with five fours and three sixes) and Ankit Bawne (45 in 67 balls, with three fours) could take MH to only 296/8, leaving them 51 runs short.
In Group B, the clash between Bengal and last season's finalists Vidharbha, centuries came from Dhruv Shorey (136 in 125 balls, with 18 fours) and Aman Mokhade (110 in 99 balls, with 12 fours and three sixes) as Vidarbha, put to bowl first by Bengal, posting 382/5, with Mohammed Shami (2/65) continuing his fine domestic run. Seasoned skipper Abhimanyu Easwaran (71 in 67 balls, with 10 fours), Shahbaz Ahmed (71 in 58 balls, with six fours and a six), Delhi Capitals star Abishek Porel (56 in 35 balls, with 10 fours and a six) and pacer Akash Deep's fiery cameo of 38* in 24 balls (with two fours and two sixes) completed another massive chase in 48.5 overs.
In Group A clash between Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan, Yash Dubey (103 in 132 balls, with seven fours) and RCB's latest seven-crore buy Venkatesh Iyer (34-ball 42 and one wicket) starred as MP managed to defend 288 runs, bundling out Rajasthan for 188 runs.
In another Group A clash between Kerala and Tripura, seasoned domestic veteran Baba Aparajith (64 in 73 balls, with four boundaries and two sixes and 5/15), Vishnu Vinod (102* in 62 balls, with nine fours and six sixes) and skipper Rohan Kunnummal (94 in 92 balls, with 11 fours and three sixes) shined for Kerala, as they posted 348/8 after being put to bat first and then skittled out Tripura for just 203 runs.
The Group B clash between a star-studded Uttar Pradesh and Hyderabad also generated highlight knocks from Indian stars Dhruv Jurel (80 in 61 balls, with four boundaries and four sixes) and Rinku Singh (67 in 48 balls, with six fours and two sixes) as UP posted 324/5 after being put to bat first. Sunrisers Hyderabad spinner Zeeshan Ansari (4/31) and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) recent record-breaking 14.20 crore buy Prashant Veer (3/47) delivered brilliant spells, bundling out Hyderabad for 240 in 43 overs.
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