Vijay Hazare Trophy 2021-22 News

Almost three years into his abrupt and unceremonious decision to quit all forms of international cricket, India batsman Ambati Rayudu is eager to extend his playing days by at least three more years. He had announced retirement after being snubbed from the team squad for the ICC ODI World Cup in 2019 but has been an active member of the Chennai Super Kings in the Indian Premier League until the last edition earlier this year. He has also been playing domestic cricket in India and played for Andhra Pradesh in the recently concluded Vijay Hazare Trophy. Discussing his time on the field in the tournament, Rayudu said that he could sustain through five 50-over matches in a span of six days and hence he believes his fitness is at par and in good shape to allow him to play for the next three years. “I recently played the Vijay Hazare Trophy which is five one-day games in six days which I got through well. I am in good shape and I hope to continue to play at least for the next three years,” PTI quoted Rayudu as saying. Rayudu made his ODI debut in the year 2013 against Zimbabwe while his debut in the shortest format came against England in 2014. He could not get the opportunity to play in the longest format for India despite being in the scheme of things for a long time. He bemoaned missing out on the opportunity to play Test cricket as “unfortunate” but said that he has no regrets about it and rather savours representing the country in the other two formats. “It is a great honour to represent India and I am happy that I represented India in the white-ball format - ODIs and T20s,” he said. “I feel unfortunate about missing out on the Test cap. But I don’t regret it as I have given my best. I am happy for the opportunities I got to represent the team and that in itself is a great honour.” Rayudu was not retained by the Super Kings for the next editions of the IPL and he will have to go through the mega auction to find a new base in the tournament.

Himachal Pradesh’s Shubham Arora played an exceptional knock of 136* against Tamil Nadu in the Vijay Hazare Trophy final in Jaipur on Sunday. Himachal Pradesh created history as they clinched the title with a brilliant win by 11 runs (VJD Method) while chasing a mammoth 315 in 50 overs. Talking about his knock and the planning while chasing the big score, Arora said that to the batsmen was that they have to play 50 overs. “We were told that we need to keep wickets in hand and try to play out the entire 50 overs,” he said while talking to The Indian Express. “My duty was to try and not get out especially during the play-off. A good start is always needed while chasing a big score.” Tamil Nadu had rode on Dinesh Karthik’s ton to put 314 on the board before getting bundled out. Apart from Karthik, Baba Indrajith struck a fifty while Shahrukh Khan chipped in with a brisk 21-ball 42. In reply, Himachal Pradesh had a decent start to the chase but lost the way in the middle before Shubham and Amit Kumar steadied the ship and stitched a stand of 148 runs for the fourth wicket. Kaur scored 74 off 79. Later, Shubham was joined by captain Rishi Dhawan who unleashed a terrific knock of 42* off 23 as Himachal Pradesh stood on the winning podium.

There was some drama in the middle in the final minutes of play during the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2021-22 final between Tamil Nadu and Himachal Pradesh when bad lights eventually stopped play. Chasing a mammoth 315 in 50 overs, Himachal Pradesh were 299/4 in 47.3 overs when the play had to be stopped but the Rishi Dhawan-led side was well ahead of the requirement and they were crowned the CHAMPIONS eventually after winning the finale by 11 runs (VJD Method). Rishi Dhawan was emotional. The Himachal Pradesh players were delighted. Their joy knew no bounds. The hard work had paid off. After all, they had won their first Vijay Hazare Trophy and against a side which is certainly looked up as the giant in domestic circuit. Dhawan expressed delight at lifting the trophy after the game. “It was long pending and we've finally done it. Really happy,” he said. Shubham Arora’s resistance It’s not really for a batter to negotiate a formidable bowling line up when the side is chasing a target of over 300 runs and the wickets had fallen around him but Himachal Pradesh’s Shubham Arora was strong-headed enough to help his team overcome a tricky situation. Himachal had started off well as the openers Arora and Prashant Chopra had put up 60 runs on the board but the latter’s departure certainly broke the shackles and the team began to lose wickets at regular intervals and was 96/3 when Amit Kumar came out to bat. The complexion of the game certainly changed from here on. It seemed as if Arora and Amit had a plan in their minds and the two batters were executing that pretty well. They began the rebuilding process in a cautious manner but never let the asking rate mount and eventually stitched a stand of 148 runs for the fourth wicket. Kumar was eventually undone for 74 off 79 after he was trapped in front of the stumps by Baba Aparajith but his departure didn’t really impact Shubham as he remained unbeaten at a well-compiled 136 off 131 to anchor his side to the victorious triumph. Rishi Dhawan’s aggressive stroke-play Himachal Pradesh captain Rishi Dhawan had been in good form in the tournament but what unleashed on Sunday was a master class from an experienced lad. Dhawan took on the Tamil Nadu spinners and especially Murugan Ashwin and hammered runs all around the park. He struck an unbeaten 42 off 23 deliveries including five fours and a maximum. He in fact discussed his knock after the game. “I was telling Shubham not to take any pressure, just get a single and I'll handle the pressure,” he said during the post-match presentation. Dinesh Karthik & his valuable experience As we talk about Shubham Arora for his performance in this final, the credits can’t really be taken away from Tamil Nadu’s Dinesh Karthik who helped his side come out of critical situation and put up a huge total on the scoresheet. In a process of shielding the regular batsmen early in the day, Tamil Nadu certainly experimented with their batting line up where they promoted lower middle order batters like Murugan Ashwin and Sai Kishore up the order. The track and the conditions in Jaipur early in the morning were favouring the bowlers and this was pretty evident when Himachal Pradesh reduced Tamil Nadu to 40/4 before Karthik and Baba Indrajith joined hands and put up a partnership of 202 runs for the fifth wicket. While Indrajith scored 80 off 71, Karthik piled up a ton. The right-hander too took his time to get his eye in first and then accelerated to eventually score 116 in 103 deliveries which involved 7 sixes and eight fours during the course. Later, Shahrukh Khan who is known to score runs at a brisk pace capitalised on the foundation laid by Karthik and Indrajith as he chipped in with 42 off 21 as Tamil Nadu struck 314 in 49.4 overs before getting bowled out. Pankaj Jaiswal eventually picked up four wickets while Rishi Dhawan scalped a three-for. Buttery hands The only thing that two sides will look back and will like to work on is the fielding efforts. Barring the early minutes of the day, the fielding from both the teams was dismal. In fact, Himachal Pradesh dropped Dinesh Karthik twice before he had scored his ton while Tamil Nadu missed out on run out chances and sitters. Later, Karthik showed some sportsman spirit and specially went to congratulate the Himachal Pradesh players.

A hundred in a tournament final is special and Dinesh Karthik’s smile said it all when he ran that 100th run against Himachal Pradesh in the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2021 final while playing for Tamil Nadu in Jaipur on Sunday. The right-hander had almost played the ball onto his stumps but it somehow didn’t hit the woodwork behind him. Karthik completed his century. Tamil Nadu didn’t really have a great start to the proceedings as the Himachal Pradesh bowlers did take early advantage of the conditions at Sawai Mansingh Stadium and scalped four early wickets to leave Tamil Nadu struggling at 40/4. Karthik and Baba Indrajith shouldered the innings seeing out the tough spells of Himachal pace bowlers. They were earlier shielded for a brief period by R Sai Kishore and Murugan Ashwin, two lower order batsmen who were promoted up the order. At the time of writing TN were 283/6 after 46 overs with Shahrukh Khan and Vijay Shankar in middle. The two batsmen took up the onus on themselves and stitched a stand of 202 runs for the fifth wicket before Indrajith departed for a well-compiled 80 off 71 balls. Karthik followed him in a span of four runs to get dismissed for a 103-ball 116, a knock that included seven maximums and 8 fours during the course. Both Karthik and Indrajith did a brilliant job in rebuilding the innings as they started off in a cautious manner and then took on the bowlers once they got their eye in. Karthik, though also got some help from the Himachal Pradesh fielders as he was dropped twice, first by the wicket-keeper in 33rd over and then by the fielder stationed at the short third man area while he was in 90s in the 39th over.

Tamil Nadu recovered after an early debacle in the Vijay Hazare Trophy Final on Sunday, 26 December. Batting first on a cold morning in Jaipur, Tamil Nadu openers were sent back to the pavilion cheaply by the Himachal pacers. With slight assistance from the deck on a nippy deck, the south India stalwarts found themselves in a precarious position down by four wickets inside the first 15 overs. However, TN played a masterclass after the dismissal of the first wicket by sending in lower order batsman R Sai Kishore in an attempt to shield the likes of Dinesh Karthik and Shahrukh Khan. The strategy seemed to be working out fairly well, but Karthik and Baba Indrajith building up a 104-run partnership, scoring at a brisk rate. At the time of writing, TN were batting at 144/4 in 34 overs having not lost a wicket since the 15th over. They still have the likes of Shahrukh Khan, Vijay Shankar and Washington Sundar in their ranks who could light up the final 15 overs to put on a big total.

Himachal Pradesh had a flying start in the Vijay Hazare Trophy Final picking up two wickets in the first 10 overs. The opening duo of Siddharth Sharma and Vinay Galetiya were on fire from ball one making life incredibly difficult for the favourites to win the final. With the Jaipur wicket offering enough nip in the winter morning, Himachal piled up the pressure on the batting side. TN opening combination of Narayan Jagadeesan and Baba Aparajith were found out in the early part of the innings with both stalwarts of the domestic circuit returning back to the pavilion inside 7 overs. The south Indian powerhouse went on to a state of panic and promoted lower order batsmen R Sai Kishore and Murugan Ashwin to shield the likes of Dinesh Karthik and Shahrukh Khan. The move did not work as planned as Sai Kishore was dismissed in the final ball of the 12th over. At the time of writing, TN were in a precarious position having lost three wickets in 13 overs, putting up just 35 runs.