Prithvi Shaw Finds Forms, Hits Seven Sixes In Match-Winning Fifty
Prithvi Shaw roared back to form on Monday, scoring a match-winning fifty for Mumbai in the ongoing Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. Shaw recently returned to action after spending nearly three months on the sidelines due to an ankle injury he had sustained on the tour of Australia. The youngster, who had scored a blistering century on his Test debut last year, twisted his ankle while fielding in the tour game against Cricket Australia XI.
Shaw had to be rushed to hospital, where it was discovered that he had torn his ligament. The team-management initially thought that Shaw would recover through the course of the series but he could not and eventually missed the entire series. He was ruled out of the series after the second Test and was replaced by Mayank Agarwal. The 19-year old later spent considerable time undergoing rehab at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bangalore before being named in the Mumbai squad.
He failed to do well in the first three games of the tournament, scoring 10, 8 and 0 but impressed against Goa on Monday. He scored his first half-century since returning to competitive cricket as Mumbai beat Goa by six wickets to bag four points in a Group C match of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. Shaw top-scored with 71 with five boundaries and a staggering seven sixes to lay the foundation for the chase of 141. Skipper Ajinkya Rahane also contributed with 31 as Mumbai won in 18.2 overs.
Earlier in the game, Goa batsmen had failed to put up a good show with the bat. As a result, the side could only score a modest total of 140 for 4 in the allotted 20 overs against the defending Vijay Hazare Trophy champions. Skipper Amogh Desai top-scored with 38 off 24 with six fours and a six. Amit Verma and Keenan Vaz also got the starts but failed to convert them, falling in 20s to Dhawal Kulkarni and Shardul Thakur respectively.
In reply, Shaw and Rahane gave Mumbai a flying start. The two India stars added 95 runs for the opening wicket to all but seal Goa’s favour. Mumbai lost three wickets for 10 runs before Suryakumar Yadav scored 24 off 19 to close the game
Brief Scores:
Mumbai 141 for 4 (Prithvi Shaw 71, Ajinkya Rahane 31; Darshan Misal 1/19) beat Goa 140 for 4 (Amogh Desai 38, Amit Verma 27; Shubham Ranjane 1/19) by six wickets.
