Vishnu Solanki helped Baroda pull off a last-over heist against Haryana with a sensational 71, which included a six off the final ball of the match, to fire his team into the semi-finals of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy T20 match, in Ahmedabad, on Wednesday.
Baroda first restricted Haryana to 148/7 in the third quarter-final, and then it was Solanki, who hammered four fours and five sixes in his 46-ball unbeaten knock to get his team over the line after 18 runs were needed off the final over.
Haryana had brought down the equation to 23 off 12 balls for Baroda and their skipper Mohit Sharma (0/30) conceded only five runs in the penultimate over to make the equation tougher for Baroda.
However, 28-year-old Solanki had other plans and took on medium pacer Sumit Kumar (1/37) in the final over, hitting two sixes and a four, to script an eight-wicket win for his team.
The right-handed batsman fittingly finished the game with a straight six, a helicopter shot on the final ball to seal the game with Baroda needing five runs off the final ball.
Earlier put into bat at the Sardar Patel Stadium, Haryana lost opener Guntashveer Singh (1) early. Soon it became 25/2 after the other opener Chaitanya Bishnoi (21) also fell cheaply.
However, Himanshu Rana (49 off 40 balls) and Shivam Chauhan (35 off 29 balls) rallied the innings with their 80-run third wicket stand.
While Chauhan hammered three fours and a six, Rana's knock was laced with seven boundaries before pacer Atit Sheth (1/27) broke the stand in the 15th over with the wicket of Chauhan. Rana also threw his wicket in the 16th over, as Haryana slumped to 115/4.
The bowlers did well to restrict Haryana below the 150-run mark despite a 16-ball unbeaten 20 from Sumit. For Baroda, off-spinner Kartik Kakade (2/7) was the pick of the bowlers.
Chasing 149, Baroda lost opener Smit Patel (21) early as he became spinner Yuzvendra Chahal's (1/15) only victim.
Kedar Devdhar (43 off 40 balls) and Solanki added 68-runs for the second wicket as they took the game deep.
However, Sumit Kumar broke the stand by dismissing Devdhar. Solanki then took the onus on himself and took their side home in company of Abhimanyu Singh Rajput (13 not out).
In the evening game, Rajasthan bowlers held their nerves as they defeated Bihar by 16 runs, in their quarter-final.
Rajasthan, who opted to bat, rode on Mahipal Lomror's 37-ball unbeaten 78, to post a competitive 164/5 in their 20 overs.
Lomror, who took Bihar attack to cleansers, hammered five fours and as many sixes. Openers Bharat Sharma (38) and Ankit Lamba (38) too played their parts to perfection. For Bihar, skipper Ashutosh Aman (2/31) and debutant Suraj Kashyap (2/28) were the pick of the bowlers.
Rajasthan bowlers then restricted Bihar to 148/4 as a fighting unbeaten 68 from Mangai Mahrour went in vain. For Rajasthan, pacer Aniket Choudhary (1/25), slow-left arm bowler Chandrapal Singh (1/21) and Ravi Bishnoi (1/34) played vital roles in the team's win.
Brief Scores:
Haryana 148/7 (Himanshu Rana 49, Shivam Chauhan 35; Kartik Kakade 2/7) lost to Baroda 150/2 (Vishnu Solanki 71 not out, Kedar Devdhar 43, Yuzvendra Chahal 1/15) by 8 wickets.
Rajasthan 164/5 (Mahipal Lomror 78 not out; Bharat Sharma 38, Suraj Kashyap 2/28, Ashutosh Aman 2/31) won against Bihar 148/4 (Mangai Mahrour 68 not out; Vikash Yadav 27 not out) by 16 runs.
