Sarfaraz Khan's cameo powers Mumbai to maiden Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy title
Kolkata, Nov 5: Domestic giants Mumbai got their hands on the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy, the elusive silverware missing from their bulging cabinet, defeating Himachal Pradesh by three wickets in the summit clash here on Saturday.
Mumbai bowlers were right on the money as spinner Tanush Kotain (3/15) and medium pacer Mohit Avasthi (3/21) shared six wickets between them to restrict Himachal Pradesh to 143 for eight.
Chasing the modest target, Mumbai had their share of hiccups before Sarfaraz Khan once again showed what he is capable of with a timely unbeaten 36-run cameo off 31 balls to help his side cross the line with three balls to spare.
There was no one player that dazzled in the summit clash.
Opting to field, Mohit drew the first blood by striking early, getting rid of Himachal wicketkeeper Ankush Bains (4) and Sumeet Verma (8) within the first five overs.
Spinner Tanush (3/15) then turned the game on its head with two consecutive wickets in the eighth over.
Nikhil Gangta (22), who was looking in good touch, was Tanush's first victim as he tried to smash a back of length delivery for a boundary but the ball failed to get the required elevation with Aman Hakim Khan taking a fine catch at deep midwicket.
Impact player Nitin Sharma was the next to go, as he departed for a first ball duck with Himachal slipping to 51 for 4 which became 52 for 5 in the next over.
Himachal lower order comprising of Akash Vasisht (25), Ekant Sen (37) and Mayank Dangar (21 not out) added 91 runs but failed to breach the 150-run mark.
Defending a modest total, medium pacer Rishi Dhawan (2/26) bowled a beautiful spell to get rid of the big-hitting Prithvi Shaw (11) and skipper Ajinkya Rahane (1), who was trapped leg before.
Yashasvi Jaiswal (27) and Shreyas Iyer (34) steadied the innings but spinner Mayank Dagar (2/24) broke the 41-run partnership as the former sliced the ball to the deep cover fielder.
Iyer, who slammed four boundaries and a six, then joined hands with Sarfaraz but as soon as the partnership started gathering momentum Vaibhav Arora (3/27) changed the complexion of the game claiming the former's wicket.
Led by Arora, Himachal bowlers then fashioned a mini batting collapse as Mumbai were suddenly down to 119 for 7.
While wickets kept falling at the other end, Sarfaraz kept his calm, going about his work silently.
Ignored by national selectors time and again, Sarfaraz silenced his detractors as he showed extreme awareness and ability to execute shots.
With Mumbai needing 23 off the last 12 balls, Sarfaraz smashed two fours and a maximum of the penultimate over to tilt the match in Mumbai's favour.
In the last over, tail-ender Tanush collected two runs off the first ball while the second delivery was a dot, increasing pressure.
But Tanush dispatched a short delivery over the fence, sending the Mumbai team into frenzy and Himachal Pradesh into despair.
Last-over finish 🙌🏻
— BCCI Domestic (@BCCIdomestic) November 5, 2022
Solid impactful performances💥
New #SyedMushtaqAlit20 Champions 🏆
There was no shortage of action in the #HPvMUM #Final as Mumbai won the title against a gritty Himachal Pradesh 👏🏻 @mastercardindia
Match Highlights 🎥🔽https://t.co/itF68ntHyG pic.twitter.com/00k9Xi1cpe
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Fake call centre duping foreigners busted in Thane; five detained
Thane (PTI): The Thane police have unearthed a bogus call centre that allegedly cheated foreign nationals, particularly US citizens, under the pretext of selling software, an official said on Wednesday.
Five persons, including the call centre owner, were detained after a raid at the premises in the Ambernath area of Maharashtra's Thane district late Tuesday night, Assistant Commissioner of Police (Ambernath division) Shailesh Kale told PTI.
The bogus facility was operating from a business centre and functioned under the garb of providing software services, the official said.
"The call centre staff targeted foreign nationals, especially Americans. They contacted them on the phone, lured them with offers of software services and extracted money from them in different forms," Kale said.
The police received a tip-off about the illegal operations and raided the premises. The search operation continued till Wednesday morning, he said.
The employees used to make hundreds of calls to foreign nationals daily and would eventually succeed in duping a few of them, Senior Police Inspector Shabbir Sayyed said.
"They collected advance payments from the victims and blocked them after receiving the money," he said, explaining the modus operandi.
The employees were provided with a specific script for conversations to gain the victims' confidence and persuade them to transfer funds, he added.
The police have seized electronic gadgets and other accessories used in the alleged racket from the premises.
A case has been registered against five persons under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, the Information Technology Act and the Indian Telegraph Act, Kale said.
The police were verifying the victims' credentials and nationality.
