Siraj bags fifer in Hyderabad win

Saurashtra trounced Ranji Trophy champions Vidarbha by eight wickets for a hattrick of wins, helping them seal a quarterfinal berth in the Vijay Hazare Trophy on Wednesday.

Hosts Hyderbad rode on pacer Mohammed Siraj’s 5/37 to hammer Chhattisgarh by 84 runs and join Saurashtra in the last eight as Group D toppers.

Saurashtra edged out Vidarbha on a better net run-rate for the second spot as it was heartbreak for the reigning Ranji champions who were leading the group with four successive wins before back-to-back defeats knocked them out of the competition.

In a must win match, Vidrabha batsmen struggled to get a partnership going before being bundled out for 159 in 40.5 overs after Saurashtra captain Cheteshwar Pujara opted to field at the AOC Centre Thapar Stadium in Secunderabad.

Saurashtra’s quarterfinal hopes had received a setback after two losses in a row including a shock defeat to Jammu and Kashmir. But they have turned it around in style with three comprehensive wins over Jharkhand, Services and Vidarbha.

At the Gymkhana Ground in Secunderabad, Hyderabad posted 280/8. In reply, Chhattisgarh were bundled out for 196.

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