Vijay Hazare Trophy: Rathod powers Vidarbha past Delhi, to face Karnataka in semis

BENGALURU: On a sunny day at the TIMES NEWS NETWORK BCCI Centre of Excellence here on Tuesday, Yash Rathod (86; 73b; 8x4, 2x6) shone bright as Vidarbha outclassed Delhi by 76 runs to book a spot in the Vijay Hazare Trophy semifinals. Powered by Rathod’s fluent knock, Vidarbha posted a competitive 300/9 in their 50 overs.In reply, Delhi were bowled out for 224 in 45.1 overs, with Nachiket Bhute (4/51) and Harsh Dubey (3/36) leading the bowling effort.Keeping the scoreboard ticking despite regular wickets, Rathod brought up his fifty off 49 deliveries before accelerating in the business end. Even as Nitish Rana struck twice in the 44th over, Rathod continued to find gaps. Prince Yadav eventually dismissed him in the business end, with Tyagi taking the catch.Delhi began their chase briskly, led by Priyansh Arya, who looked in fine touch early on. Arya struck boundaries with ease as Delhi raced to fifty before Bhute provided the crucial breakthrough. Attempting the pull shot, Arya feathered a catch to Rohit Binkar, sparking loud celebrations from the debutant wicketkeeper.Apart from a fighting knock from Anuj Rawat (66), Delhi’s innings unravelled as Vidarbha’s bowlers kept a tight grip.In the other quarterfinal, Punjab handed Madhya Pradesh a crushing 183-run defeat. Prabhsimran Singh’s 88 powered Punjab to 345/6 before MP were bundled out for 162 in 31.2 overs, setting up a semifinal clash with Saurashtra.Brief scores:Vidarbha 300/9 in 50 overs (Atharva Taide 62 , Yash Rathod 86; Ishant Sharma 2-47, Navdeep Saini 2-68) bt Delhi 224 in 45.1 overs ( Anuj Rawat 66; Nachiket Bhute 4-51, Harsh Dubey 3-36)Punjab 345/6 in 50 overs (Prabhsimran 88, Anmolpreet Singh 70; Tripuresh Singh 2-61) bt Madhya Pradesh 162 in 31.2 overs (Rajat Patidar 38; Gurnoor Brar 2-27, Sanvir Singh 3-31 ).