NEW DELHI: Mayank Agarwal's outstanding 139 not out guided Karnataka to a narrow one-wicket victory against Punjab in Ahmedabad on Thursday, while Mumbai and Maharashtra secured identical nine-wicket triumphs in their respective Vijay Hazare Trophy fixtures.
Despite Utkarsh Singh's contribution (3/22 and 27), Jharkhand succumbed to Haryana by 64 runs. In Group E, matches between Kerala and Madhya Pradesh, and Bengal versus Tripura ended in shared points due to rain interruptions in Hyderabad.
Captain Agarwal remained unbeaten on 139, steering Karnataka to an exciting one-wicket victory over Punjab in their Group C encounter.
Punjab, batting first, were dismissed for 247, with Anmolpreet Singh leading the scoring with 51 (60 balls, 5 fours). Several other batsmen made starts but failed to capitalise.
Abhishek Sharma (17), Prabhsimran Singh (26), Nehal Wadhera (37), Anmol Malhotra (42) and Sanvir Singh (35) reached double figures but couldn't progress further.
Karnataka's response saw regular wicket falls, but Agarwal stood firm, striking 17 fours and three sixes in his 127-ball innings as they reached 251 for nine.
Angkrish Raghuvanshi delivered a swift 18-ball 50 not out, including nine fours and a six, as Mumbai chased down Arunachal Pradesh's modest 73 all out, reaching 77/1 in 5.3 overs for a comfortable Group C victory.
At DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai, Maharashtra dominated Meghalaya with an all-round performance, securing a nine-wicket win in Group B. Siddhesh Veer excelled with figures of 10-1-28-3 and scored 57 not out from 66 balls with eight fours.
In Vizianagaram's Group D fixture, Vidarbha overwhelmed Chhattisgarh by eight wickets. Yash Thakur claimed 10-2-27-4 as Vidarbha restricted Chhattisgarh to 80, before achieving the target with Karun Nair unbeaten on 44.
Tamil Nadu secured a substantial 114-run victory over Uttar Pradesh in Visakhapatnam's Group D match. Shahrukh Khan's unbeaten 132 from 85 balls (13 fours, seven sixes) and Mohamed Ali's 76 not out (75 balls, eight fours, one six) helped Tamil Nadu recover from 68 for five to post 284 for five.
UP's response, despite Rinku Singh's 55, ended at 170 against a coordinated Tamil Nadu bowling effort.
Brief scores:
