The fifth round of the 2025-26 Vijay Hazare Trophy (VHT) group stage matches has come to an end. Just like the previous rounds, the pitches aided batters. However, since the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) was streaming select matches, most missed out on what happened. But fear not. InsideSport will give you an in-depth rundown of what transpired.
Samson, Pandya smash hundreds on VHT return
There were hundreds galore on January 3. Playing his first VHT match, Axar Patel scored 130 from 111. The all-rounder claimed 2 wickets in 7 overs as well, helping Gujarat win by 7 runs against Andhra. Devdutt Padikkal registered his 4th hundred in the last five matches. Similarly, Tilak Varma and Sanju Samson brought up hundreds as well. But none of them made it to India’s squad for the New Zealand ODIs.
The biggest highlight of the day was Hardik Pandya. The all-rounder smashed 133 from 92 for Baroda. This included an over where he struck 6 boundaries to reach his hundred from just 68 balls. Ruturaj Gaikwad scored 66 from 52, which didn’t prove to be enough, as he was dropped from India’s ODI squad. His Maharashtra teammate, Arshin Kulkarni, ended up scoring a run-a-ball 114 as they beat Mumbai by 128 runs.
Harshit Rana & Rishabh Pant dismantle Services
Delhi registered their 4th win of the season against Services. Rishabh Pant’s bat finally woke up, as he registered his second fifty. He and Priyansh Arya scored unbeaten fifties while chasing 179. But the real damage was done by Harshit Rana. The pacer took 4 wickets in his first VHT match of the season.
Shami fires with bat & ball
Mohammed Shami starred against Assam with both bat and ball. He played a 25-run cameo from just 11 balls and then rocked up to take 55/3 in 9 overs. However, he too wasn’t selected for the New Zealand series. After the match, Bengal head coach Laxmi Ratan Shukla labelled the snub as ‘shameful’.
Arshdeep Singh takes 5-fer
Much like Harshit, Arshdeep Singh was on fire in his first match of the VHT 2025-26. The left-arm pacer took a 5-wicket haul against Sikkim. Arshdeep bowled 10 of Punjab’s 22.2 overs and skittled the opposition out for just 75. Punjab openers Prabhsimran Singh and Harnoor Singh chased the target down in just 6.2 overs.
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