Former India Under-19 cricketer Yash Rathod made his senior Vidarbha debut and made an immediate impact with a polished 36 to guide his team to a strong-looking total of 150 for 7 against Services in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Twenty20 Trophy cricket tournament.
In the fourth league outing of the Elite Group D at the Holkar Stadium in Indore on Sunday, Yash Rathod impressed with his stroke-filled 36 off just 31 balls which included four boundaries and a towering six to justify his inclusion.
After losing earlier three straight matches, Vidarbha team is only playing for pride now and to avoid the bottom place.
In-form Siddhesh Wath continued his fine form to slam 29 while opening the batting. His 31-ball 29 was studded with five fours.
All-rounder Apoorv Wankhade (26), Mohit Raut (20), Jitesh Sharma (12) and Akshay Wadkar (10) were the other notable contributors.
Stand-in skipper Akshay Wakhare won the second toss in succession and opted to bat first.
For Services, Varun Choudhary (3-30) and Nitin Yadav (2-29) bowled well. Services also yet to open their points tally in the tournament.
Brief scores
Vidarbha 150 for 7 in 20 overs (Yash Rathod 36, Siddhesh Wath 29, Apoorv Wankhade 26, Mohit Raut 20, Jitesh Sharma 12, Akshay Wadkar 10; Varun Choudhary 3-30, Nitin Yadav 2-29, Nitin Tanwar 1-21, Vikas Yadav 1-26) vs Services.
