Defending champions Mumbai made a confident start to their Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy campaign, defeating Railways by seven wickets, with India players Ajinkya Rahane and Suryakumar Yadav making vital contributions in a Group A match in Lucknow on Wednesday.
Mumbai had little trouble overhauling the modest target of 158 with Rahane clobbering a 33-ball 62, studded with four boundaries and five sixes, at the top to help the star-studded side finish the chase with 25 balls to spare.
India's T20 skipper Suryakumar, who shared a 51-run stand with Rahane for the second wicket, struck an equally belligerent 30-ball 47 on his return to the field after a 2-1 away series win against Australia in the five-match T20 series earlier this month.
Railways, led by former India player Karn Sharma, were off to a poor start, losing their openers for just 19 runs before former India U-19 player Mohammad Saif brought some stability with a well-made 48 in the company of young Ravi Singh (26 off 19 balls) and Ashutosh Sharma (61 off 30 balls).
After Saif departed with Railways still in trouble at 113/4, it was Sharma who gave a mighty push by smashing seven boundaries and three maximums to give some respectability to the score.
Sharma, who holds the record for the fastest T20 fifty by an Indian, struck at a rate of nearly 204, making the Mumbai bowlers, led by skipper Shardul Thakur, look pedestrian.
Thakur (1/15) and Shivam Dube (1/11) got a wicket each.
Mumbai never looked in trouble after they got a strong start, thanks to Rahane, while Ayush Mhatre struck 18.
By the time Rahane departed, Mumbai were in the driver's seat at 113/2 and Suryakumar, who is likely to play most of the SMAT matches to fine-tune his skills for the five-match T20I series against South Africa next month, took them over the line.
Chhattisgarh managed to defend a paltry 133 thanks to their bowlers, especially right-arm pacer Sourabh Majumdar who took three wickets, as they defeated Vidarbha by 27 runs.
In another match, Kerala inflicted a 10-wicket defeat on Odisha by chasing a steep 177-run target in just 16.3 overs with Rohan Kunnummal scoring a 60-ball 121 and overshadowing his more illustrious partner Sanju Samson, who scored an unbeaten 51
Brief scores:
Railways 158 for 5 in 20 overs (Mohammad Saif 48, Ashutosh Sharma 61; Shardul Thakur 1/15, Shivam Dube 1/11) lost to Mumbai 159 for 3 in 15.5 overs (Ajinkya Rahane 62, 47; Rahul Sharma 2/43) by 7 wickets.
Chhattisgarh 133 for 9 in 20 overs (Shashank Singh 34; Yash Thakur 3/25, Harsh Dubey 2/13) beat Vidarbha 106 in 19.1 overs (Sourabh Majumdar 3/23, Shubham Agarwal 2/13, Ravi Kiran 2/10) by 27 runs.
Odisha 176 for 7 in 20 overs (Biplab Samantray 53; MD Nidheesh 4/35) lost to Kerala 177 for no loss in 16.3 overs (Sanju Samson 51 not out, Rohan Kunnummal 121 not out) by 10 wickets.
Andhra 143 for 9 in 20 overs (Ricky Bhui 46; Mukhtar Hussain 4/20) beat Assam 114 in 19.4 overs (Pradyun Saikia 44; Satyanarayana Raju 3/20, Prithvi Raj 2/12) by 29 runs.
Smaran shines in Karnataka victory, Rajasthan drub TN
Ravichandran Smaran gave another reminder about his unlimited potential with a well-timed fifty, guiding Karnataka to a five-wicket win over Uttarakhand in the opening match of Group D in Ahmedabad.
Once Uttarakhand posted a competitive 197 for five in 20 overs, Karnataka's task was cut out.
Skipper Kunal Chandela (88, 49 balls, 7x4, 5x6) and Aanjaneya Suryavanshi (54, 36b, 5x4, 3x6) added 122 runs for the fourth wicket as Uttarakhand recovered from 32 for three.
Pacer Vidwath Kaverappa was the stand out performer for Karnataka, taking three wickets conceding 37 runs.
Karnataka slipped to 15 for two, losing Karun Nair and KL Shrijith but Mayank Agarwal and Smaran took their side to 99 through an alliance of 84 runs for the third wicket.
But quick wickets of skipper Agarwal, Smaran and Abhinav Manohar reduced Karnataka to 128 for five in 13.2 overs.
The former champions needed 70 runs off 6.4 overs at that stage.
But late-order batters Praveen Dubey (38, 24b) and Shubbang Hegde (29, 18b) knocked off those runs to take Karnataka past the target in the last ball of the match.
Left-arm pacer Rajan Kumar (3/24) was the most successful bowler for Uttarakhand.
Meanwhile, Jharkhand extended Delhi's ongoing modest domestic season to SMAT, beating them by seven wickets.
Jharkhand easily chased down a meagre target of 133 with more than five overs to spare.
Brief scores:
Uttarakhand 197/5 in 20 overs (Kunal Chandela 88, Aanjaneya Suryavanshi 54; Vidwath Kaverappa 3/37) lost to Karnataka 198/5 in 20 overs (R Smaran 67, Praveen Dubey 38 not out, Shubhang Hegde 29 not out; Rajan Kumar 3/24) by 5 wickets.
Tripura 123 all out in 19.3 overs (M Murasingh 56, Hanuma Vihari 31; Jaydev Unadkat 3/19, Chirag Jani 3/19) lost to Saurashtra 124/6 in 16 overs (Ruchir Ahir 29 not out, Vishvaraj Jadeja 28; Swapnil Singh 2/12) by 4 wickets.
Tamil Nadu 169/8 in 20 overs (Sonu Yadav 43 not out, N Jagadeesan 29; Ashok Sharma 4/40, Manav Suthar 2/22) lost to Rajasthan: 170/4 in 16.3 overs (Deepak Hooda 76 not out, Kartik Sharma 36; T Natarajan 2/16) by 6 wickets.
Delhi 132 all out in 19.2 overs (Priyanshu Arya 39, Ayush Badoni 30; Sushant Mishra 3/25, Vikash Singh 2/21) lost to Jharkhand 138/3 in 14.5 overs (Kumar Kushagra 45 not out, Anukul Roy 26 not out) by seven wickets.
Urvil Patel's 37-ball 119 powers Gujarat to 8-wkt win
Skipper Urvil Patel went on a six-hitting spree en route to an unbeaten 119 as Gujarat blew away Services by eight wickets to open their campaign on a rampaging note in a Group C fixture in Hyderabad.
Patel, making his debut as T20 captain, made a mockery of the Services attack, smashing 12 fours and 10 sixes in his whirlwind 37-ball assault.
The 27-year-old, retained by Chennai Super Kings, raced to his century in just 31 balls -- the second-fastest T20 hundred by an Indian.
Patel and Abhishek Sharma jointly hold the record for the fastest T20 hundred by an Indian, having reached the mark in 28 balls in the 2024-25 edition against Tripura and Meghalaya respectively.
In 2023, Patel had also struck a 41-ball ton against Chandigarh in the Vijay Hazare Trophy.
The wicket-keeper batter shared a blistering 174-run opening stand with Aarya Desai (60 off 35) to overhaul the target of 183 in just 12.3 overs at the Gymkhana Ground.
Earlier, sent in to bat, Services managed 182 for nine with opener Gaurav Kochar top-scoring with a 37-ball 60 studded with seven fours and two sixes.
Their innings never really took off as wickets fell regularly, with Arzan Nagwaswalla (2/38) and Hemang Patel (2/21) picking up two apiece.
At the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Punjab began their campaign with a five-wicket win over Himachal Pradesh.
Opting to bowl, Punjab restricted HP to 147 for eight, with none of the batters, including Innesh Mahajan (33) and Nikhil Gangta (35), able to convert starts.
Harpreet Brar (2/14) and Gurnoor Brar (2/32) claimed two wickets each.
In reply, Punjab cruised to 153 for five in 13.5 overs, powered by Anmolpreet Singh (43) and Salil Arora (36).
In another Group C match, Puducherry defeated Haryana by five runs.
Pougajendy Akash smashed a 23-ball 60 as Puducherry posted 201 for nine, riding on a solid show by the top and middle-order batsmen after Haryana opted to bowl.
In reply, Haryana could only manage 196 for six, despite a 47-ball 90 by opener Arsh Ranga and a 31-ball 52 by Yashvardhan Dalal.
Skipper Aman Khan (4/28) was the pick of the bowlers, taking four wickets.
Later in the day, Abishek Porel smashed a 24-ball fifty as Bengal defeated Baroda by six wickets.
Opting to field, Bengal restricted Baroda to 181 for eight, with Sakshaim Chaudhary (2/24) and Writtick Chatterjee (2/38) taking two wickets apiece.
Only four Baroda batters -- Bhanu Pania (53), skipper Krunal Pandya (39), Shashwat Rawat (26) and Shivalik Sharma (32) -- managed to reach double figures.
Porel then gave Bengal a flying start, putting on an 82-run opening stand with Karan Lal (42). After their dismissal, Sudip Gharami (27) and Shahbaz Ahmed (38) saw the team home with 17 balls to spare.
Brief scores:
Gujarat 183/2 in 12.3 overs (Urvil Patel 119 not out; Mohit Rathee 2/39) beat Services 182/9 in 20 overs (Gaurav Kochar 60; Arzan Nagwaswalla 2/38, Hemang Patel 2/21) by 8 wickets
Punjab 153/5 in 13.5 overs (Anmolpreet Singh 43; Vaibhav Arora 2/23) beat Himachal Pradesh 147/8 in 20 overs (Innesh Mahajan 33, Nikhil Gangta 35; Harpreet Brar 2/14) by 8 runs.
Puducherry 201/9 in 20 overs (Pougajendy Akash 60; Nishant Sindhu 2/28) beat Haryana 196 for 6 in 20 overs (Arsh Ranga 90; Aman Khan 4/28) by five runs.
Baroda 181/8 in 20 overs (Bhanu Pania 53, Krunal Pandya 39; Sakshaim Chaudhary 2/24, Writtick Chatterjee 2/38) lost to Bengal 182/4 in 17.1 overs (Abhishek Porel 50, Karan Lal 42) by six wickets.
Shaw flops on Maharashtra debut
Umran Malik showed signs of returning to rhythm as Jammu & Kashmir produced a disciplined bowling effort to beat Maharashtra by five wickets in their Group B opener in Kolkata.
The three-pronged J&K pace attack, led by Auqib Nabi -- the second-highest wicket-taker at the mid-way stage in this season's Ranji Trophy with 29 scalps -- bundled out Maharashtra for a below-par 130 in 19.5 overs. J&K overhauled the target in 18.4 overs.
Playing only his second match after recovering from the hip injury that ruled him out of last IPL and sidelined him for nearly 19 months, Malik looked rusty in his opening over, conceding 10 runs including two boundaries.
Malik, who was retained by Kolkata Knight Riders recently, had returned wicketless in his lone Ranji match this season against Rajasthan.
Playing at his IPL home ground, Malik however hit his stride soon after, dismissing IPL specialist Rahul Tripathi (5) -- who was dropped on duck -- in his next over and later removing Nikhil Naik in the 17th.
After a memorable 2022 season with Sunrisers Hyderabad, Malik featured in only nine matches across 2023 and 2024 before being picked by KKR for IPL 2025 for Rs 75 lakh but only to be ruled out of because of injury. He's set to make KKR debut in the upcoming IPL.
Nabi returned with best figures of 3/28, while Yudhvir Singh (2/22) and Malik (2/24) ensured the pace troika accounted for seven wickets.
Left-arm spinner Abid Mushtaq chipped in with 2/26 as skipper Shubham Khajuria rotated his attack smartly.
Nabi struck in his second over when he removed Prithvi Shaw for 5.
Shaw, once seen as India's next batting star, has begun rebuilding his career after shifting from Mumbai to Maharashtra this season following years of inconsistency and off-field distractions.
The 26-year-old has amassed 470 runs in five matches, including a 222 versus Chandigarh in this season's Ranji Trophy, but apart from one boundary, he never looked settled.
Abid ended a brisk start from opener Arshin Kulkarni (20 off 13), before Yudhvir Singh dismissed skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad for 6.
Maharashtra were three down inside the Powerplay. Malik, called on for the final over of the fielding restrictions, again leaked 10 runs before bouncing back with two strikes.
Maharashtra played recklessly, attacking every ball, and despite going at over 7.5 runs per over at stages, continued to lose wickets. No. 8 Vicky Ostwal (21) was their top-scorer.
J&K's chase was set up by a steady 48-run opening stand between Qamran Iqbal (28) and Khajuria (26). Despite losing wickets later, the modest target never unsettled them.
Juyal shines as UP clinch six-wicket win
In another Group B game, former India U-19 wicketkeeper-batter Aryan Juyal, released by Lucknow Super Giants without getting a game last season, produced a classy 57-ball 93 not out to steer Uttar Pradesh to a composed six-wicket win over Goa in a 173-run chase at the Jadavpur University Salt Lake Campus ground.
Juyal smashed 11 fours and three sixes and looked set for a maiden T20 hundred before showing restraint after UP lost two wickets -- Sameer Rizvi (38) and Rinku Singh (4) -- for five runs in successive overs.
With the IPL mini-auction nearing, the 24-year-old showcased both aggression and game awareness, finishing the chase with eight balls to spare.
He was in the 80s when Rinku fell to a slower bouncer from Vasuki Koushik, pulling straight to Suyash Prabhudesai at midwicket.
As he walked off, Rinku told him: “You have done well, now finish the game. Don't see how many runs are left -- just go not out.”
Juyal did exactly that, completing a chanceless knock.
Earlier, after losing skipper Karan Sharma for a two-ball duck, Priyam Garg (28 off 14; 2x4, 2x6) counterattacked, adding 71 with Juyal.
The keeper-batter later stitched another 78-run stand with Rizvi (38 off 26; 4x4, 2x6).
For Goa, Abhinav Tejrana's blistering 35-ball 72 went in vain.
He smashed six sixes and four fours, dominating a 55-run partnership with Arjun Tendulkar, who opened with a run-a-ball 28 (4x4).
Their assault had Goa on track for a 200-plus total before fine death-over spells from young ShivamMavi (2/24) and veteran Bhuvneshwar Kumar (2/23) applied the brakes.
Brief scores:
Goa 172/9 in 20 overs (Abhinav Tejrana 72; Shivam Mavi 3/24, Bhuvneshwar Kumar 2/23) lost to Uttar Pradesh 173/4 in 18.2 overs (Aryan Juyal 93 not out, Sameer Rizvi 38; Deepraj Gaonkar 2/19, Vasuki Koushik 2/30) by six wickets.
Madhya Pradesh 144/9 in 20 overs (Shivang Kumar 45; Chama Milind 3/34, Rakshan Readdi 2/26, Arfaz Ahmed 2/6) lost to Hyderabad 145/5 in 18.1 overs (Rahul Buddhi 59 not out; Tripuresh Singh 2/25) by five wickets.
Maharashtra 130 in 19.5 overs (Vikcy Ostwal 21; Auqib Nabi 3/28, Yudhvir Singh 2/22, Umran Malik 2/24, Abid Mushtaq 2/26) lost to Jammu and Kashmir 132/5 in 18.4 overs (Qamran Iqbal 28, Shubham Khajuria 26; Rajvardhan Hangargekar 2/32, Prashant Solanki 2/29) by five wickets.
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