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VHT R4: Statement tons for Padikkal and Sarfaraz; Shami keeps knocking selectors' doors

Mayank

Padikkal, Sarfaraz and Shami were among the top performers in VHT Round 4 [Source: ImTanujSingh, Saabir_Saabu01/X.com]Padikkal, Sarfaraz and Shami were among the top performers in VHT Round 4 [Source: ImTanujSingh, Saabir_Saabu01/X.com]

Wednesday morning saw all domestic teams taking the field for the last set of matches of the calendar year 2025, with Round 4 of the Vijay Hazare Trophy commencing across the country, where some players around the India set-up were up for the task ahead of the team selections for the India vs New Zealand ODI team selections in the coming days.

Among key performers once again was Karnataka opener Devdutt Padikkal, alongside the sidelined stars Sarafraz Khan and Mohammed Shami. Recent ODI centurion Ruturaj Gaikwad also made his mark to strengthen his chances of retaining a spot in the 15.

Here's a brief look at how things panned out in Vijay Hazare Trophy Round 4.

Padikkal scores third century in four matches; Mayank and Nair among runs

Batting first against Pondicherry in Ahmedabad, the duo of Mayank Agarwal and Devdutt Padikkal stitched a huge 228-run opening partnership to set a good platform in 37.5 overs before Padikkal got out after his third century of the competition, scoring 113(116) with 10 fours and four sixes. On the other hand, Mayank got 132(124) with 15 fours and two sixes. Karun Nair also capitalised on the start and went all guns blazing for his 62*(34) with four sixes and four fours to his name to take Karnataka to 363/4 in 50 overs.

Despite all top-7 batters getting starts, Pondicherry got bundled for 296 runs in 50 overs. Karnataka went to number 2 in Elite A.

India pacers set up a stunning win for Bengal's big win over J&K

Jammu and Kashmir batted first against a formidable Bengal pace attack in Rajkot, and the pace-trio of Mohammed Shami, Akash Deep and Mukesh Kumar were too hot to handle for their batting line-up in the morning. Starting with Shami's excellent start to get rid of Qamran Iqbal for a duck, followed by Yawer Hassan in his first three overs, Bengal reduced J&K to 6/3.

Backing up Shami's start, Akash Deep and Mukesh Kumar made the most of the conditions and ran through the opposition, picking four wickets each. Captain Paras Dogra (19 off 46) and Shubham Khajuria (12 off 29) were the only batters with double-digit scores, while the others struggled. Shami finished with 2/14 (6), while Akash Deep got 4/32 (8.4) and Mukesh got 4/16 (6) to dismantle JKCA for 63 runs. Bengal ended up chasing the target in just 9.3 overs by 9 wickets.

Sarfaraz scores a statement century; Shardul shows all-round brilliance

At the back of his recent strong performances across Ranji and Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and a fifty against Uttarakhand, Sarfaraz Khan turned up once again for Mumbai with a mammoth score of 157(75), scoring 9 fours and 14 sixes. He came in to bat after a good start by Yashasvi Jaiswal (46) and stitched a 93(75) stand with his brother Musheer, who got 60(66) and continued to bat alongside Siddhesh Lad, Shardul Thakur and Hardik Tamore to take Mumbai to 444/8 after 50 overs.

Shardul Thakur scored 27(8) followed by 53(28) for Tamore as well before they restricted Goa to 357/9 in 50 overs. Shardul once again did well with the ball for his 3/20 (6), dismissing Arjun Tendulkar and two others. Abhinav Tejrana (100 off 70) and Deepraj Gaonkar (70 off 28) were Goa's best batters.

Century from Krunal Pandya keeps Baroda in contention for KOs

Baroda batted first against Hyderabad in Rajkot after losing the toss, and Hyderabad soon regretted their decision after all three top-3 batters scored centuries. Amit Pasi led their charge with a 127(93) with 12 fours and 7 sixes, while Nitya Pandya got 122(110) with 12 fours and a six. Thanks to the 230-run opening partnership, Krunal Pandya promoted himself to 3 and got an unbeaten 109 off 63 with 18 fours and a six to get the team to 417/4.

In response, Hyderabad gave them a strong fight through Abhirath Reddy's 130(90) and Pragnay Reddy's 113(98), but three-fers for Atit Sheth and Mahesh Pithiya meant they were bowled out for 380 runs.

Other notable performances

  • Aryan Juyal vs Assam: 150(140)
  • Rinku Singh vs Assam: 37*(15)
  • Vipraj Nigam vs Assam: 4/66 (9.3)
  • Venkatesh Iyer vs Tripura: 4/44 (10) and 16(9)
  • Anshul Kamboj vs Services: 4/43 (10)
  • Rajvardhan Hangargekar vs Uttarakhand: 3/37 (6)
  • Hritik Shokeen vs Odisha: 4/27 (10) and 32(24)
  • Ankit Kumar vs Services: 144(123)
  • Ankur Panwar vs Andhra: 5/27 (10)
  • Utkarsh Singh vs Tamil Nadu: 123(120)
  • Darshan Nalkande vs Chandigarh: 4/33 (6.1)
  • Baba Aparajith vs Rajasthan: 126(116)
  • Vijay Shankar vs Madhya Pradesh: 91(98) and 3/49 (8).