7:58 PM IST, Local Time: A scintillating century from Sai Sudharsan, and Tamil Nadu win by 3 wickets, ending their journey on a positive note.
Earlier, Saurashtra posted a competitive 183/8 after choosing to bat, thanks to late acceleration that yielded 60 runs in the final five overs. Vishvaraj Jadeja set the tone with a blistering 70 off 39 balls, despite wickets falling around him. Sammar Gajjar added stability before switching gears to score 66 off 42, and his 70-run stand with Jadeja rebuilt the innings after a shaky middle phase.
Tamil Nadu had their moments with the ball—R Silambarasan impressed with 3/30 and Esakkimuthu A chipped in with two wickets—but struggled to maintain pressure as Saurashtra’s middle order capitalised. Cameos from Ruchit Ahir, Parth Bhut, and Chetan Sakariya pushed the total to 183/8.
In reply, Tamil Nadu lost Tushar Raheja (1), Shivam Singh (2), and N Jagadeesan (5) cheaply, but Sai Sudharsan and Rithik Easwaran steadied the ship, adding 95 runs for the 4th wicket. Easwaran departed after a brisk 29 runs, and Tamil Nadu lost a couple of more wickets in quick succession.
Sudharsan kept going strong, while Sunny Sandhu exploded with a blazing 9-ball 30 before a run-out at the non-striker’s end eased the pressure on Sudharsan. On the other hand, Sudharsan (101*) hammered his century and sealed the game with a boundary in the penultimate over.
Jaydev Unadkat starred with the ball for Saurashtra, claiming 3 wickets. Ankur Panwar chipped in with a couple of wickets, while Chetan Sakariya celebrated a solitary wicket but conceded 50 runs in his 4 overs.