Baroda started their final Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy group game needing a spark. Amit Pasi, playing his first senior T20, provided it with a blistering 114 from 55 balls in Hyderabad, equalling Bilal Asif’s global record for the highest score on debut. The wicketkeeper-batter’s ten fours and nine sixes carried Baroda to 220 for five, a total that proved 13 runs beyond Services’ reach.
“I just tried to keep things simple and back my strengths,” Pasi said afterwards, still coming to terms with the milestone. His fifty took 24 deliveries; the hundred, 44. Once set, he and Vishnu Solanki – “Watching him from the other end, I felt we were witnessing something special,” the vice-captain noted – put on 75 in 5.2 overs for the fourth wicket. Bhanu Pania’s unbeaten 28 from 15 kept the tempo high at the death, that tricky final phase of an innings when bowlers look to contain.
Services were not overawed. Openers Kunwar Pathak and Ravi Chauhan raced to 84 in 8.2 overs, each registering 51. “We were right in it until the fifteenth over,” skipper Mohit Ahlawat admitted after his brisk 41 off 22. The chase, however, stalled when Raj Limbani (three for 37) struck twice in the space of four balls, leaving Ahlawat short of support despite Nakul Sharma’s late flourish.
Baroda, who finish the league stage with four wins from seven, will take confidence from the balance shown here: power up front, composure with the ball, and an emerging match-winner in Pasi. Services close their campaign with one victory, plenty to ponder, and the consolation of having pushed a play-off contender all the way.
