All-round Saurashtra down Maharashtra, win second Vijay Hazare Trophy
Ahmedabad, Dec 2: Sheldon Jackson played one of the most important innings of his career, an unbeaten 133, to guide Saurashtra to their second Vijay Hazare Trophy title as they comfortably beat Maharashtra by five wickets in the final, here Friday.
Saurashtra's well-oiled bowling unit led by its skipper, tamed a formidable batting line-up from Maharashtra before old domestic warhorse Jackson's unbeaten century overshadowed national contender Ruturaj Gaikwad's 108 to chase down a target of 249 with 21 balls to spare.
"I think the toss did play a crucial role, we were lagging behind. It was 30-70 percent of advantage/disadvantage. After 30-40 overs, we were ahead. Batting first, 250 was a very good total," Gaikwad said after the match.
As Gaikwad rightly conceded, that toss did become one of the major deciding factors as Unadkat rightly put Maharashtra into bat.
At the onset, he led the bowling show with an exemplary opening spell (6-1-5-0) in the Powerplay after electing to field as Gaikwad batted in a painstakingly slow fashion scoring 15 off first 61 balls.
"(It is) unbelievable and yet to sink in. Winning one time is amazing but winning it second time proves that we are a champion side. Big game, big guys stepped up," the champion skipper said at the post-match presentation ceremony.
While Unadkat (1/25 with 41 dot balls) was Saurashtra's bowling hero in the first 10 overs, keeping the dangerous Gaikwad under tight leash, the last 10 overs of the Maharashtra innings belonged to all-rounder Chirag Jani. The seam bowling all-rounder's 48th over hat-trick (Saurabh Nawale, Rajvardhan Hagargekar and Vicky Ostwal) did stop Maharashtra from adding at least 20 more runs.
Bowling wicket-to-wicket, Jani cleaned up Nawale and Hangargekar and then sealed his hat-trick, trapping Vicky Ostwal plumb in front.
Maharashtra managed just two boundaries and scored 37 runs losing five wickets in the next seven overs in a crucial turning point for Saurashtra.
In the middle overs, it was another Gaikwad show as he carved his name as a 'Vijay Hazare legend' with his 12th hundred (highest in competition history) with seven fours and four sixes. He thus had three hundreds in three knock-out games but on a slowish track, Saurashtra bowlers never really let the Maharashtra batters dominate with second best score being Azim Kazi's 31.
With Saurashtra bowlers making the perfect execution against him, Gaikwad clearly fought hard for his hundred that was evident with his roaring celebration when he notched his century off a boundary against Jani.
Chasing a below-par target, Saurashtra got off to a perfect start with Jackson and Harvik Desai (50; 67 balls) stitching a 125-run opening stand in 26.4 ovrs.
Mukesh Choudhary (2/38) then gave a double blow, dismissing Desai with a short ball and Jay Gohil (0) with angular one in a space of three balls while a third wicket -- Samarth Vyas (12) was holed in the deep of Ostwal's bowling.
They lost half of their side 39.5 overs after all-rounder Prerak Mankad was cleaned up by left-arm spinner Satyajeet Bachhav as the match was evenly poised with Saurashtra needing 57 in 10.1 overs.
However Bacchav was hammered by Jackson, who hit four out of his five sixes off the left-arm orthodox's bowling.
But Maharashtra failed to apply pressure and some sloppy fielding let them down. India's U-19 World Cup Rajvardhan Hangargekar (0/70 in 9 overs) got a fair amount of pasting.
The match ended when Jackson despatched seamer Manoj Ingale over square leg for a six and played the leg glance to chase down the target.
Brief Scores:
Maharashtra 248/9; 50 overs (Ruturaj Gaikwad 108, Azim Kazi 37; Chirag Jani 3/43) lost to Saurashtra 249/5; 46.3 overs (Sheldon Jackson 133, Harvik Desai 50; Mukesh Chaudhary 2/38, Vicky Ostwal 2/20) by five wickets.
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Accused gunman at correspondents' dinner was believed to be targeting top officials, Blanche says
Washington (AP): The accused gunman who tried to storm the ballroom at the White House Correspondents' Association dinner with guns and knives travelled across the country before the event and is believed to have been targeting members of the Trump administration, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said Sunday.
Blanche also said officials believe the suspect traveled by train from California to Chicago and then on to Washington, where in recent days he checked in as a guest to the hotel where one of Washington's glitziest events was being held Saturday night.
Investigators have not publicly named the suspect, but two law enforcement officials familiar with the matter have identified him to The Associated Press as 31-year-old Cole Tomas Allen of Torrance, California.
Law enforcement officials who have examined the gunman's electronic devices and his writings preliminarily believe he intended to target administration members in attendance at the dinner. He attempted to charge into the cavernous ballroom at the Washington Hilton but was tackled to the ground in a chaotic scene that resulted in shots being fired, President Donald Trump being hurried off the stage and guests ducking for cover beneath their tables.
“It does appear that he did in fact set out to target folks who work in the administration, likely including the president,” Blanche told NBC's “Meet the Press.”
The suspect is believed to have purchased the firearms he carried within the last couple of years, Blanche said. He is not being cooperative and is expected to face multiple charges on Monday.
Video posted by Trump showed the suspect running past security barricades as Secret Service agents ran toward him. One officer was shot in a bullet-resistant vest but was recovering, officials said. The gunman was taken into custody and was not injured, but was being evaluated at a hospital, police said.
“He failed,” Blanche said on CBS's “Face the Nation.” “Law enforcement did their jobs.”
Social media posts that appear to match the suspect show he is a highly educated tutor and amateur video game developer.
A May 2025 profile photo of Allen appears to match the appearance of the man in a photo of the alleged attacker being taken into custody that was posted Saturday night by Trump. The photo, posted to the social networking site LinkedIn, shows him in a cap and gown after graduating with a master's degree in computer science from California State University, Dominguez Hills.
Allen earned a bachelor's degree in 2017 in mechanical engineering from the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. He listed his involvement there in a Christian student fellowship and a campus group that battled with Nerf guns.
The shooting at the security barricades happened minutes after the event got underway.
The Secret Service and other authorities swarmed the room as guests ducked under tables by the hundreds. Gasps echoed through the ballroom as guests realized something was happening. Hundreds of journalists immediately got on phones to call in information.
“Out of the way, sir!” someone yelled. Others yelled to duck. From one corner, a “God Bless America” chant began as the president was escorted offstage. Outside the hotel, members of the National Guard and other authorities flooded the area as helicopters circled overhead.
After an initial attempt to resume the event, it was scrapped for the night and will be rescheduled.
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