Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy: Hardik Pandya's fiery 74 guides Baroda to 5-wicket win

India all rounder Hardik Pandya was seen in imperious form in the opening game of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2024-25 as he played a blistering innings to guide Baroda to a five-wicket win. Pandya played a breathtaking knock of 74* (35) smashing six fours and five sixes and helped his team chase down 185 in 19.3 overs against Gujarat at Holkar Cricket Stadium, Indore on Saturday, November 22.

After being put in to bat first, Gujarat posted a good score of 184/5 in their allotted 20 overs as Aarya Desai scored quick-fire 78 (52) clobbering nine fours and three sixes. Captain Axar Patel also played a handy knock of 43 (33). In



reply, Baroda were left shaken after losing both of their openers with just 16 runs on the board.

Shivalik Sharma bailed his team out of early trouble with his innings of 64 (43). Following his dismissal, Hardik took Baroda home and sealed the game for his side. Ravi Bishnoi was the pick of the bowlers for Gujarat with figures of 2/23 in four overs.

Notably, it was Hardik’s first appearance in the tournament since 2016 as he played under the leadership of his brother Krunal Pandya. He finished as the highest run scorer of that edition with 377 runs to his name from ten innings at an average of 53.85.