The 15th edition of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy – India’s premier domestic T20 competition – got underway on Tuesday.
| Elite A | Elite B | Elite C | Elite D | Elite E |
| Mumbai, Railways, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Vidarbha, Assam, Madhya Pradesh, Mizoram | Puducherry, Punjab, Delhi, Goa, Hyderabad, Manipur, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh | Arunachal Pradesh, Maharashtra, Meghalaya, Services, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Karnataka, Kerala | Andhra Pradesh, Nagaland, Baroda, Bihar, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Saurashtra | Odisha, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Bengal, Chandigarh, Chattisgarh, Jharkhand |
Prithvi Shaw and Dhawal Kulkarni were the major contributors in Mumbai’s dominant nine-wicket win over Kerala. Kulkarni bagged 2/16 from four overs as Mizoram were restricted to 98/8 in the allotted 20 overs, and Shaw’s unbeaten 55 off 34 ensured that the chase was secured with 9.3 overs remaining.
Uttarakhand, Vidarbha and Madhya Pradesh were the other teams to get off to a winning start in Group A.
Delhi registered a comprehensive 71-run win over Manipur in Group B. A major highlight in the game was Hrithik Shokeen becoming the first to be named the ‘impact player’ in the competition’s history. Shokeen replaced Hiten Dalal, who had smashed 47 off 27 in Delhi’s first innings effort of 167/7, and returned 2/13 in his three-over spell.
The new ‘impact player’ rule, wherein a player can replace any other in the line-up, regardless if the original player in the starting XI has been dismissed or bowled his full-quota of overs, was introduced by the BCCI ahead of the tournament last month. The replacement can be made at any point before the end of the 14th over of either innings. The new rule is being put in action on an experimental basis, and could be used in the IPL depending on how it goes at the SMAT 2022/23.
Goa, Uttar Pradesh and Punjab were the other winners in Group B on Day 1 of the competition. Reigning champions Tamil Nadu went down to Chhattisgarh by six runs in a Group E clash, while Karnataka, last year’s runners-up, beat Maharashtra by 99 runs in a Group C face-off.
The five teams to top the respective group will qualify automatically for the quarter-finals. The other three teams will be decided on the basis of pre-quarter finals, which will be contested by the next-best finishing teams in the groups.
11 venues across five cities – Jaipur, Indore, Rajkot, Mohali, Chandigarh and Lucknow – are hosting the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2022/23.
Other results of Day 1 of Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2022/23
Elite Group C
Kerala beat Arunachal Pradesh by 10 wickets
Meghalaya beat Jammu and Kashmir by eight wickets
Haryana beat Services by 1 run
Karnataka beat Maharashtra by 99 runs
Elite Group D
Baroda beat Nagaland by seven wickets
Gujarat vs Himachal Pradesh – match abandoned with wet outfield
Andhra vs Saurashtra – match abandoned due to rain
Elite Group E
Odisha beat Sikkim by nine wickets
Bengal vs Jharkhand – match abandoned with wet outfield
Chhattisgarh beat Tamil Nadu by six runs
