Record-breaking century by Aman Mokhade sends Vidarbha into Vijay Hazare Trophy final

Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], January 16 (ANI): Vidarbha stormed into the Vijay Hazare Trophy final after clinching a dominating victory against Karnataka by six wickets in Bengaluru.
Aman Mokhade was the standout performer for Vidarbha, playing a superb knock of 138 off 122 balls, which included 12 fours and two sixes. His innings not only guided Vidarbha into the final but also saw him equal a long-standing record. Mokhade's century was his fifth of the season, drawing him level with N Jagadeesan for the most centuries in a single Vijay Hazare Trophy campaign. Jagadeesan had achieved the feat during the 2022-23 season.
Vidarbha did suffer an early setback in the chase when opener Atharva Taide was dismissed for 6 by Abhilash Shetty, leaving the side at 9/1 in 3.3 overs.
Dhruv Shorey then joined Mokhade at the crease, and the pair steadied the innings with a solid 98-run partnership. Shorey played a composed knock of 47 off 64 balls before being dismissed.
Mokhade continued to dominate after Shorey's departure and found excellent support from Ravikumar Samarth. The duo stitched together a massive 147-run stand that took the game firmly away from Karnataka. Mokhade eventually fell after his well-crafted century, having laid the platform for an easy finish.
Samarth remained unbeaten on 76 off 69 balls and ensured they crossed the line. They chased down 281 in 46.2 overs.
For Karnataka, Abhilash Shetty was the pick of the bowlers, finishing with figures of 3/48, but his efforts were not enough to stop Vidarbha's march into the final.
Earlier, Vidarbha seamer Darshan Nalkande produced a brilliant bowling performance, claiming a five-wicket haul to restrict Karnataka to 280 in the first semi-final of the Vijay Hazare Trophy in Bengaluru on Thursday.
Karnataka's innings got off to a shaky start as their openers failed to settle. Captain Mayank Agarwal was the first to fall, managing 9 runs. Soon after his partner's dismissal, the in-form Devdutt Padikkal followed him, as he was dismissed by Yash Thakur for 4. Karnataka were 20/2 in 6.2 overs.
Karun Nair and Dhruv Prabhakar then attempted to rebuild the innings, adding 54 runs together. Prabhakar scored 28 before becoming Darshan Nalkande's first victim of the match.
After Prabhakar's dismissal, Nair found solid support from Krishnan Shrijith, with the pair putting together a crucial 113-run partnership that steadied Karnataka's innings. Nair anchored the stand and played a composed knock, scoring 76 off 90 balls, including eight fours and a six, before being dismissed by Nalkande.
Shrijith followed soon after, having scored 54 off 53 deliveries with seven boundaries. He was dismissed by Yash Kadam.
Shreyas Gopal and Abhinav Manohar then added 55 runs to push the total forward. However, Nalkande returned to break the partnership, dismissing Gopal for his third wicket. He went on to remove Vidyadhar Patil and later picked up Abhinav Manohar to complete his five-wicket haul.
Nalkande finished with impressive figures of 5/48 from his ten overs.
Vijaykumar Vyshak was the last batter to be dismissed, scoring 17 off 11 balls before falling to Yash Thakur.
Among the other bowlers, Thakur picked up 2/64, while Nachiket Bhute returned figures of 1/46 and Yash Kadam claimed 1/39, as Vidarbha managed to keep Karnataka in check. (ANI)