Star batters Virat Kohli and Rishabh Pant struck half-centuries as Delhi edged Gujarat by seven runs in a tense Elite Group D clash of the Vijay Hazare Trophy on Friday, while elsewhere Rohit Sharma endured a first-ball duck in Jaipur and Uttar Pradesh thrashed Chandigarh by a massive 227-run margin.
Kohli, named Player of the Match, made a fluent 77 off 61 balls and Pant added a measured 70 off 79 deliveries as Delhi posted a modest 254 for nine in 50 overs.
Gujarat, despite promising phases in the chase, folded for 247 in 47.4 overs on a slightly tacky surface at the BCCI Centre of Excellence.
Delhi’s innings revolved around Kohli and Pant after an early blow. Kohli was forced to walk in early following the departure of opener Priyansh Arya and immediately stamped his authority.
After blocking his first ball, he straight drove pacer Chintan Gaja for four, signalling the form he is currently in.
While other Delhi batters struggled to break free against disciplined Gujarat bowling, Kohli looked at ease in his favoured format.
A pulled six off Gaja and a sublime flicked four off Arzan Nagwaswalla marked his acceleration.
The 37-year-old reached his fifty in just 29 balls, an innings decorated with 10 fours and a six. He registered his 85th List A half-century by carving leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi for a boundary over covers.
A second consecutive century appeared likely before left-arm spinner Vishal Jayswal intervened.
Jayswal read Kohli’s shimmy early and fired one through to have him stumped by Urvil Patel. Delhi were 108 for four at that stage and in need of consolidation.
Jayswal had earlier removed Nitish Rana and Arpit as well, threatening to derail the innings.
Pant then assumed responsibility, shelving his natural aggression to steady the ship. There were no trademark Pant strokes until he crossed fifty off 64 balls.
His first moment of innovation came on the 66th ball with a falling scoop attempt off Bishnoi, which he tried again 12 balls later against Gaja.
Growing impatience, however, proved costly as Pant lost his stumps to Jayswal, ending a vital 73-run partnership with Harsh Tyagi, who contributed 40.
Late runs from Simarjeet Singh and Ishant Sharma, who added 19 for the final wicket, pushed Delhi beyond the 250 mark.
Gujarat’s chase of 255 began steadily. Urvil Patel, dropped on 31, and Aarya Desai put on 67 for the opening wicket, followed by a 54-run stand between Aarya and Abhishek Desai.
Gujarat reached 121 for one in 25 overs and appeared well placed. The innings then unravelled dramatically as Aarya, Abhishek, Jaymeet Patel and Hemang Patel fell for the addition of just 23 runs, leaving the side at 144 for five.
Saurav Chauhan, who once represented Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the IPL, revived hopes with a brisk 49 off 43 balls.
Alongside Vishal Jayswal, he added 69 for the sixth wicket and kept the asking rate in check, including two sixes off Arpit.
Simarjeet Singh, who had earlier been taken on by Aarya, made amends by dismissing Chauhan, triggering another collapse.
A run out of Gaja left Gujarat needing 12 runs from 17 balls with one wicket in hand. Prince Yadav then produced a sharp delivery to surprise Ravi Bishnoi, who edged to covers where Kohli ran in to complete the catch and roared in celebration, sealing Delhi’s narrow victory. Prince finished with figures of three for 37.
Rohit's duck
In Jaipur, the spotlight fell sharply on Rohit Sharma for very different reasons.
The Mumbai batter was dismissed for a duck on the first ball of the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2025-26 match against Uttarakhand, stunning a crowd of around 12,000 spectators who had turned up expecting another big innings following his recent record-breaking century.
Uttarakhand pacer Devendra Singh Bora sent back Rohit without a run, instantly becoming the centre of attention.
The dismissal marked the 20th time Rohit has been out for zero in List A cricket.
Rinku Singh’s 56-ball unbeaten century
Meanwhile in Rajkot, Uttar Pradesh produced a dominant all-round display to crush Chandigarh by 227 runs, led by skipper Rinku Singh’s explosive unbeaten century.
Batting first at the Sanosara Cricket Ground, Uttar Pradesh recovered from the early loss of opener Abhishek Goswami in the third over through a stabilising partnership between Aryan Juyal and Dhruv Jurel.
The pair rebuilt with authority, rotating strike and punishing loose deliveries. Jurel played with particular intent, stepping out frequently and bringing up a fluent half-century.
He was eventually dismissed for 67 by Nishunk Birla, ending a 96-run stand. Juyal then shifted gears seamlessly and found support in Sameer Rizvi as the duo added 71 runs.
Rizvi made 32 before falling, by which time Uttar Pradesh were firmly in control.
The late overs belonged to Juyal and Rinku. Uttar Pradesh surged past 300 with six overs remaining as the pair combined power hitting with sharp running.
Juyal brought up a well-earned century and was eventually dismissed for a commanding 134. Rinku, however, took complete charge, reaching his hundred in just 56 balls.
He hammered 63 runs in the final six overs alone, finishing unbeaten on 106 with 11 boundaries and four sixes as Uttar Pradesh closed on 367 for four.
Chandigarh were never in the contest in the chase and were bowled out for 140, handing Uttar Pradesh a comprehensive 227-run victory.