4:54 PM IST, Local Time: A valiant century from Shahbaz Ahmed goes in vain as Bengal are bowled out for 245, handing Hyderabad a commanding 107-run victory. With this heavy defeat, Bengal are all but out of the tournament.
Earlier, Hyderabad delivered a dominant batting performance to pile up a massive 352 for 5, driven by a truly remarkable innings from Aman Rao. After Bengal opted to bowl, Hyderabad’s openers laid a solid platform, with Rahul Singh providing the early impetus and Aman playing the anchor. The pair added over a hundred for the first wicket before Rahul departed for a fluent 65, but Hyderabad never lost momentum. Aman then combined with Tilak Varma in a crucial partnership that kept the innings on track through the middle overs.
Aman’s calm control stood out as wickets fell around him. He rotated the strike smartly, picked his moments to attack, and ensured the run rate never dipped. Even a late burst of wickets from Mohammed Shami couldn’t slow Hyderabad’s charge, as Aman shifted gears brilliantly in the final phase of the innings.
The left-hander capped off a memorable knock by smashing a six off the final ball to bring up a stunning double century — 200* off 154 balls, studded with 12 fours and 13 sixes. His marathon effort propelled Hyderabad to an imposing total.
Mohammed Shami bagged three wickets for Bengal, but was expensive as he conceded 70 runs in 10 overs. Shahbaz Ahmed and Rohit Das chipped in with one wicket each.
Bengal’s chase never really took off as they suffered a disastrous start, slipping to 50 for 4 inside the first eight overs. Mohammed Siraj led Hyderabad’s new-ball charge brilliantly, claiming three early wickets to put Bengal firmly on the back foot.
The fightback came through Anustup Majumdar and Shahbaz Ahmed, who stitched together a much-needed 97-run stand for the fifth wicket. Majumdar looked positive and fluent in his 59, while Shahbaz held the innings together at the other end. Just when Bengal were starting to believe, Chinntla Rakshan Reddy broke the partnership by removing Majumdar, and the momentum swung back Hyderabad’s way.
Shahbaz carried on bravely and brought up a superb century, but he ran out of partners as wickets kept falling around him. He was left stranded on 108* as Bengal were bowled out for 245 in 44.4 overs, handing Hyderabad a dominant 107-run win.
Mohammed Siraj led the charge for Hyderabad with an impressive 4 for 58 from his 10 overs. He was well supported by Nitesh Reddy, who picked up two wickets, while Chama Milind, Chinntla Rakshan Reddy, Nitin Sai Yadav, and Pranav Varma chipped in with one wicket apiece to complete Bengal’s collapse.