Chennai
Tamil Nadu breezed past Meghalaya by 92 runs, but failed to qualify for the Super League in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
In its last group stage match at the Lalabhai Contractor Stadium in Surat, TN posted a mammoth total of 213 for two in the first innings. While India opener Murali Vijay (107) smashed a brilliant century, all-rounder Washington Sundar (53) made a fifty. In reply to TN’s huge score, Meghalaya finished at 121 for the loss of four wickets.
Though the Ravichandran Ashwin-led side won by a huge margin in its final encounter, it was still placed fourth in Group B with 16 points from six matches. It came behind Vidarbha (20 points), Gujarat (16) and Himachal Pradesh (16), with the last two edging TN in terms of Net Run Rate (NRR).
Ashwin won the toss for TN and elected to bat first. Openers Vijay and Washington got off to a scintillating start, collecting 45 runs in the first four overs of the clash. The team got past the 50-run mark in 5.1 overs and kept going for the shots. The scoring rates of the batsmen did take a hit in the coming overs, but they did not lose their wickets.
Vijay reached his half-century in 33 balls as TN inched closer to 100 on the scoreboard. It took the side just 67 deliveries to register the three-figure mark. After some time, it was Washington’s turn to celebrate his 50, which came off 32 balls.
Vijay and Washington shared a 139-run opening wicket stand before the latter was dismissed by Akash Kumar for 53. The century partnership was the highest for any wicket in the tournament. The 19-year-old Washington’s innings was studded with five boundaries and two sixes. At the other end, Vijay kept belting Meghalaya bowlers for fun. The India international, who hit nine fours and five maximums during his stay, too was dismissed by Akash, in the final over.
It is to be noted that Vijay made 50+ scores in each of his last three innings in the competition. TN finished at 213 for two, with Vivek Raj (36*) and M Mohammad (9*) remaining not out at the end. Vivek played a quick-fire cameo of 36 off 14 balls (four fours and two sixes) to heap more misery on the opponent.
Despite chasing a very big total, Meghalaya had a slow start. It lost three wickets in the first 10 overs and had a mountain to climb in the second half. A whopping 167 runs were required and with the arsenal it had, it certainly didn’t look possible. It closed out its innings at 121 for four, suffering a huge defeat.
Brief scores: Tamil Nadu 213 for 2 in 20 overs (Murali Vijay 107, Washington Sundar 53, Vivek Raj 36*, Akash Kumar 2/39) beat Meghalaya 121 for 4 in 20 overs (Gurinder Singh 38*, Murugan Ashwin 2/16)
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