DEL VS MP 2ND SEMI FINAL

Right then! It's Mumbai vs Madhya Pradesh at the Finale of SMAT 2024 and it can not get any more exciting than this. Both the teams won a one-sided semifinal and have proved their worth to be here. The Final is scheduled to start at 4.30 pm IST (11 am GMT) on the 15th of December, Sunday. Join us here early for all the pre-match excitement as it will be a clash of the titans. Till then, Have a good night!

Rajat Patidar is the PLAYER OF THE MATCH and is up for a chat after the game, credits their success in the tournament to the exceptional performance of the bowling unit. He highlights the difficulty of restricting batters on a challenging surface and applauds his bowlers for rising to the occasion. Patidar explains that the team’s strategy was to chase, a decision made with clear intent. On his personal performance, he emphasizes his focus on impactful batting by targeting specific bowlers.

The captain of Delhi, Ayush Badoni feels that they fell a few runs short which ultimately put a lot of pressure on the bowlers. Reckons that they could have done well in the powerplay while batting. Ends up by saying that he feels proud as a skipper to have qualified for the semifinals but also states that they could have done way better in this game.

... TIME FOR THE PRESENTATIONS ...

MP’s bowling attack, led by Iyer with two wickets and supported by Tripuresh Singh, Avesh Khan, and Kumar Kartikeya with a wicket each, played a crucial role in restricting the opposition. In their chase, MP faced an early setback as Ishant Sharma struck in the first over, dismissing Arpit Gaud for a golden duck. Sharma continued his fiery spell, removing Subhranshu Senapati in the third over, putting MP under pressure early in their innings. However, Madhya Pradesh's resilience and depth in batting eventually guided them to a comfortable victory, securing their place in the grand finale.

After being put in to bat, Delhi started positively with Priyansh Arya scoring a quick 29 runs. However, Yash Dhull struggled at the other end, managing only 11 runs off 18 balls. The MP bowlers tightened their grip in the latter part of the powerplay, effectively stemming the flow of runs. Delhi’s middle-order also failed to accelerate. Ayush Badoni and Himmat Singh spent time at the crease but couldn’t find their rhythm, both falling to Venkatesh Iyer in the same over. This left Delhi in a precarious position, unable to build momentum. In the latter half of the innings, Anuj Rawat played an unbeaten knock of 33, and Mayank Rawat too, attempted to steady the innings but found it challenging to score freely. Anuj eventually broke free toward the end, hitting a few boundaries to lift Delhi to a modest total of 146/5 in 20 overs.

Rajat Patidar and Harpreet Singh have taken Madhya Pradesh into the finals with brilliantly calculated batting and notching up a centurion partnership. Madhya Pradesh win the game with 7 wickets after being 47/3. Superb innings from the skipper who led from the front and got his team through to the Finals along with a brilliantly paced innings by the experienced Harpreet Singh. Madhya Pradesh stormed into the final of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2024 with a commanding performance, defeating Delhi in style.

SIX! Harpreet Singh finishes off in style! MADHYA PRADESH IS THROUGH TO THE FINALS! Suyash drops a half-volley, there to be hit, on off. Harpreet Singh clears his front leg and gets his bat properly under the ball. Picks it up aerially and the ball sails just over the ropes. The fielder stationed at long on collects the ball and flicks it inside the field of play by leaping in the air, but he lands behind the ropes with his ball in his hand. A big win for Madhya Pradesh and they qualify for the finale after 2010-11 in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.

Slow and full, on off, Harpreet Singh reverse sweeps it but straight to point.

SCORES ARE LEVEL NOW! Darts in a yorker on middle and leg, Rajat Patidar shovels it out to long on for a single. Also, the 100-run stand comes up between these two.

Tossed up, a googly on middle, Harpreet Singh waits for it to arrive and taps it with an open bat face to short third for a single.

WIDE! Sprays it down leg on a length. Wide called.

SIX! How has he played that? This is audacious hitting! Prince Yadav bangs a short one, on the top of the stumps, Rajat Patidar swivels, and goes for a pull shot and hits it behind to deep fine for a huge six. That has gone almost ten rows back into the stands. Madhya Pradesh need just 4 runs to win now.

Full in length, around off, Rajat Patidar squeezes it out to cover where Himmat Singh dives to his left and stops the ball.

FOUR! Well-timed! In a hurry now is Rajat Patidar! Full in length, on off, Rajat Patidar prods ahead and hits it on the up. Lifts the ball over mid off for a boundary on the bounce.

Back of a length, on the body, Harpreet Singh inside edges onto the body and the ball rolls to the left of backward point. A single taken.

SIX! Helped on its way! Prince Yadav comes from around the stumps and bangs it short, on the body, Harpreet Singh uses the pace of the ball and goes for a pull shot. It takes a bit of a top-edge and flies behind deep fine for a six.