Kolkata, Nov 14 (IANS) Mumbai captain Suryakumar Yadav unleashed his carnage as Mumbai chased down 173 against Hyderabad in their Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy opener on Saturday at the Jadavpur University Campus 2nd Ground here on a high note.

On his return to competitive cricket, Surya made a stellar unbeaten 60 from 21 balls to power his side to a cakewalk win in the Group D Elite clash. Musheer Khan also made a strong 51 off 24 balls, while Shivam Dube provided the finishing touches as Mumbai chased down the target in just 13.1 overs.

Surya, who lost his India T20I captaincy and his place in the team after leading the Men in Blue to the 2026 T20 World Cup defence, is playing top-flight cricket for the first time since the IPL. He was in action during the Mumbai T20 League in June and then in club cricket, but returned to top-flight cricket after some time. He was named captain of the Mumbai side for the SMAT.

Coming to the match, Hyderabad made 172/10 in their 20 overs as their batters could not make the most of the starts. Abhirath Reddy scored 35 off 24 balls, while No. 4 Kodimela Himateja made a 16-ball 25. Captain Chama V Milind came with a late cameo of 22 from 12 deliveries to power the side to a fightable total.

In reply, Mumbai made a strong start with Angkrish Raghuvanshi (27 from 13 balls), and the other opener, Hardik Tamore, also batted well with 22 from 16 balls. Mumbai were 90/2 after 7.5 overs, well on course for the chase before SKY and Musheer ripped apart the bowling.

SKY hit two sixes and as many fours in the first seven balls he faced, bringing up his fifty in just 15 balls. Musheer also showed his hitting prowess as the two made a mockery of Hyderabadi bowlers, with SKY first hitting Ved Reddy for 22 in the ninth over, before the pair combined to hit Pranav Varma for 24 in the next.

Musheer was dismissed on 51 in the 12th over, but SKY kept going as Dube also joined the party and finished the job with a six on the 14th over. During his 60-run stay, SKY smashed five sixes and six fours, while Musheer hit three sixes and six fours. Dube tonked a couple of sixes as well.

Brief Scores: Hyderabad 172/10 in 20 overs (Abhirath Reddy 35, Kodimela Himateja 25; Maxwell Swaminathan 3-23, Shivam Dube 2-31) lost to Mumbai (Suryakumar Yadav 60, Musheer Khan 51; Ajay Dev Goud 2-41, Pranav Varma 1-30) by seven wickets.

--IANS

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