Bowlers go great guns in Syed Mushtaq Ali 2016-17

New Delhi: Bowlers hogged the limelight on Friday as most of the Syed Mushtaq Ali inter-state T20I cricket matches turned out to be low-scoring affairs. In the East zone clash at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata, Assam medium pacer Pritam Das returned with figures of 5 for 9 to dismiss Tripura for a paltry 85. In response, Assam lost just three wickets to overhaul Tripura’s target with more than seven overs to spare. In another clash at the same venue, hosts Bengal beat Odisha by 24 runs to continue their unbeaten run in the tournament. Bengal rode on useful contributions from opener Shreevats Goswami (33), Writtick Chatterjee (33) and Pramod Chandila (32) to post 145 for 7 after being sent into bat.

In reply, Odisha were bowled out for 121 in 18.4 overs, thanks to medium pacer Sayan Ghosh’s 3 for 25 and supported by left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha, who took 2 for 29. Down south, inspired by leg-spinner D. Swaroop Kumar’s 5-wicket haul, Andhra beat Hyderabad by 11 runs. Electing to bat after winning the toss, captain Hanuma Vihari top-scored with 49 runs to post 140 before bowling Hyderabad for 129 at MRF Pachyappas Ground in Chennai. Meanwhile, Karnataka medium pacer Sreenath Aravind scalped four wickets to guide his side to a six-wicket win over Goa and reach the top of the South zone table at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy: Saha, Gambhir ensure wins for Bengal, Delhi

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Aravind returned with figures of 4 for 29 to restrict Goa to 120 before Karnataka skipper Vinay Kumar top-scored with 34 runs to take the side over the line with 50 balls to spare. In another tie at the same venue, promising batsman Baba Aparajith’s unbeaten 51 helped hosts Tamil Nadu beat Kerala by five wickets. Electing to bat, Kerala were restricted to a paltry 128, thanks to medium pacer Aswin Crist’s 3 for 19 before Aparajith guided the home side to victory with more than an over remaining.

In the central zone clash, Madhya Pradesh beat Uttar Pradesh by 26 runs at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur while Chhattisgarh edged past Railways by six runs at the same venue.