SMA Trophy 2021: Amazing bowling display puts Punjab in semi-finals; Karnataka blown away by 9 wickets in 1st QF

Siddharth Kaul picked 3/15, while Ramandeep, Sandeep and Arshdeep picked 2 wickets each.

The defending Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 trophy champions Karnataka were deemed favorites in their first quarter-final match of the 2020-21 tournament against Punjab. The match was played at the New Sardar Patel Stadium, in Motera, Ahmedabad.

Punjab captain Mandeep Singh won the toss and chose to field first. The decision was proven correct by his bowlers as Karnataka was blown away for 87 runs in 17.2 overs. Aniruddha Joshi top scored with 27 runs, while Shreyas Gopal and captain Karun Nair also contributed.

For Punjab, Siddharth Kaul returned figures of 3/15, while Ramandeep Singh (2/22), Arshdeep Singh (2/16), and Sandeep Sharma (2/17) were the other main wicket-takers.

In reply, though Punjab lost Abhishek Sharma for 4, picked by Abhimanyu Mithun, Prabhsimran Singh (49* in 37 balls with 3 sixes and 2 fours) and captain Mandeep Singh (35* with 4 fours and 1 six) added 85* runs for the second wicket to take the team to an emphatic 9-wicket win, by chasing the target in 12.4 overs only.  

BRIEF SCORES:
KAR 87 (A JOSHI 27; S KAUL 3/15) lost to PUN 89/1 (P Singh 49*, M SINGH 35*) by 9 wickets

Punjab advances into the semifinals.