Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2021/22: Full list of teams that have made the pre-quarterfinal and knockout stages of the tournament
The ongoing edition of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy is nearing its business end, with group stage matches about to reach a conclusion.
11 teams have made it to the next stage, with six competing in the preliminary quarter-finals. The table-toppers of Group A, B, C, D and E have advanced directly to the quarter-final stage.
With that said, let's take a look at the 11 teams that have made it to the knockout stages of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2021.
Vidarbha (Plate Group)
Vidarbha topped the plate group with 20 points, having won all five of their group stage matches. They started their Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2021/22 campaign with a victory over Arunachal Pradesh by 94 runs.
Furthermore, Vidarbha defeated Nagaland, Meghalaya by five and eight wickets, respectively. The Akshay Wadkar-led side have won their last couple of group stage matches by 167 runs and 130 runs against Manipur and Sikkim respectively.
They will square off against Maharashtra in the first pre-quarterfinal on November 16 at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi.
Hyderabad & Saurashtra (Group E)
Hyderabad were the only unbeaten side from Group E with five victories to their name in the league phase. They defeated Saurashtra, Uttarakhand, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh and Chandigarh to storm into the quarter-finals.
Hyderabad will take on Gujarat at the Palam A Stadium in Delhi in their fourth quarter-final match of the season.
Saurashtra, on the other hand, finished second in the Group E points table with four wins and a loss from five league stage matches. They started their Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2021/22 season on a negative note, having lost to Hyderabad by two wickets.
However, Saurashtra were quick to bounce back and register four consecutive victories to make it to the preliminary quarter-finals of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2021/22. They will lock horns with Karnataka on November 16 in a bid to qualify for the next round.
Gujarat & Kerala (Group D)
With four wins from five matches, Gujarat finished atop the Group D points table at the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2021/22. They won their season opener against Kerala by nine wickets but succumbed to defeat when they took on Assam in their second match of the season.
However, the club managed to win their last three group stage matches and sneak into the quarter-finals. Their next match is against Hyderabad on November 18 at the Palam A Stadium.
Kerala will be overjoyed, having qualified for the next round of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. Both Kerala and Madhya Pradesh had 12 points each at the end of the group stage. However, the former side made it to the pre-quarter-final stage.
They won against Bihar, Assam and Madhya Pradesh while losing a couple of matches against Railways and Gujarat.
Rajasthan & Himachal Pardesh (Group C)
The best team from Group C made it to the quarter-finals with five victories against their name. They defeated Jharkhand, Jammu & Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh, Andhra and Haryana in their league stage matches to stay undefeated in the ongoing edition of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
Meanwhile, Himachal Pradesh suffered a couple of defeats against Rajasthan and Haryana. However, their three victories against Jharkhand, Jammu & Kashmir and Andhra were sufficient to help them reach the knockouts stage.
Himachal Pradesh will go head to head against Kerala in their third pre-quarter-final match of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2021/22.
Bengal & Karnataka (Group B)
Both teams finished their league phase matches with four wins and a loss from five matches each. Bengal finished atop the points table, while Karnataka ended up second. The only thing that differentiates the two sides is their respective Net Run Rates (NRR).
Bengal's only loss came against Mumbai, while Karnataka lost their only game of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2021/22 against Bengal.
Tamil Nadu & Maharashtra (Group A)
Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra are the two teams from Group A who have made it to the quarter-finals and pre-quarterfinals, respectively. Both sides had a decent run in the competition, having lost only one out of their five fixtures.
Tamil Nadu's loss came against Goa in Round 4 of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2021/22. Meanwhile, Maharashtra lost their season opener against Tamil Nadu but ensured they end up on the winning side in the remaining four games to qualify for the knockouts.