Mushtaq Ali Trophy: Nervy Hyderabad edge past Chandigarh

CHANDIGARH: Hyderabad averted moments of on-field embarrassment after managing to edge past Chandigarh by five wickets in their Group C tie of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy at the Sector 26 Ground on Tuesday.
The disciplined effort from their strike bowlers Mohd Siraj (3/15) and Mehdi Hasan (3/23) to bundle Chandigarh out for their lowest ever T20 total of 123, could have gone in vain as the Hyderabad batsmen looked rusty during the chase before eventually managing to pull off a win in the penultimate over.
The sloppy run-rate could well work against them as the Ambati Rayudu-led side find themselves tottering at the No 5 spot with 8 points in Group C, after registering two wins from their four outings so far. Chandigarh, on the other hand, occupy the fourth position, thanks to a better run-rate.
On Tuesday, it was business as usual for the Hyderabad opening bowling combo of Siraj and Yudhvir Charak (2/37) as they kept a tight line to reduce Chandigarh to 5 for 2 before the left-arm spin of Hasan triggered a middle order collapse that almost broke the backbone of the home batting line-up.
All-rounder Bipul Sharma was the only Chandigarh batsman to show some resistance with a 27-ball 35, laced with three fours and a six, while Gurinder Singh's late order blows produced a quickfire 18-ball 20 and more importantly pushed the total to the three-figure mark.
Not the ones to easily give up, the Chandigarh bowlers defied a brisk 35-run opening stand between Tanmay Agarwal (28 off 15 balls; 4X6) and Rayudu (10 off 8; 4X1) in mere 3.1 overs, as Shreshth Nirmohi (2/23) and Sarandeep Singh (2/17) struck twice each to reduce the visitors to 47 for 4 in 5.3 overs.
However, Sandeep Bavanaka bailed the team out of trouble with a sensible unbeaten 39-ball 32, and thanks to his 43-run fifth wicket stand with Jamalpur Mallikarjun (22 off 27; 6X1) that kept the home bowlers at bay.
Gurinder Singh raised the home side's hopes for a brief period when he packed back Jamalpur in the 15th over but Sandeep and new man Chama Milind (23 not out off 17; 4X2, 6X1) ensured the tourists crawl to the target without any hiccups.
Brief Scores:
Chandigarh: 123 all out in 19.5 overs (Bipul Sharma 35, Gurinder Singh 20; Mohd Siraj 3/15, Mehdi Hasan 3/23, Yudhvir Charak 2/37)
Hyderabad: 126/5 in 19 overs (Sandeep Bavanaka 32 not out, Chama Milind 23 not out, Tanmay Agarwal 28; Shresth Nirmohi 2/23, Sarandeep Singh 2/17)