TAMIL Nadu had done their homework well and when it was time to execute those plans, they did it with aplomb. First they shot out Vidarbha for a paltry 150 and then raced to the target in just 11.2 overs losing five wickets to take second position in the Group B to qualify for Vijay Hazare Trophy quarter-finals ahead of Jharkhand. In fact, it was first total failure of Vidarbha batsmen in the tournament.

 

Vidarbha stumper Akshay Wadkar (31) and opener R Sanjay (28) were the main contributors as the double Ranji Trophy champions were bundled out for their lowest score of the league in 41 overs. Nachiket Bhute slammed two sixes and Rajneesh Gurbani hit a six and a four from 12 balls each to score 13 and 12 runs respectively. Baba Aparajith, J Kousik and M Mohammed snared three wickets each for Tamil Nadu. For making it to the quarters, TN knew they had to get those runs as quickly as possible. India player and IPL stalwart skipper Dinesh Karthik (19; 14b, 2x6) promoted himself and along with fellow opener Narayan Jagadeesan (48; 18b, 4x4, 4x6) gave the team a flying start.

 

They took on each and every Vidarbha bowler as 11 was the least economy for bowlers Aditya Sarvate and Gurbani. Though seamers Bhute and Saurabh Dubey managed to scalp two wickets apiece, they leaked too many runs. Batsman Shahrukh Khan, who was sold way over his base price in the recent IPL auctions, could not cash in on the opportunity. M Mohammed (37*; 14b, 3x4, 3x6) and Pradosh Ranjan Paul (14*; 4b, 3x4) collected 25 runs from nine balls to complete an overwhelming win. Andhra topped the pool also with an identical 12 points (NRR 0.732) above TN (0.650) and Jharkhand (0.295). Vidarbha finished last with four points.