Top 7 performers of the 2018/19 Vijay Hazare Trophy
Vijay Hazare Trophy’s 17th edition ended with Aditya Tare’s heroics helping Mumbai defeat Delhi to lift the crown. The trophy which is named after one of the most famous Indian cricketers, Vijay Samuel Hazare was first played in the year 2002-03 as a limited-overs domestic cricket competition.
In April 2018, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) reduced the total number of teams to 29 (removing Bihar). But then in July 2018, BCCI increased the teams to 37 introducing Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Nagaland, Puducherry, Sikkim, and Uttarakhand.
The tournament has 4 groups named as Group A, Group B, Group C, and Group D. Groups A and B comprise total 9 teams while Group C and D has 10 teams in it. The 5 best-ranked teams from Group A and B along with the top 2 teams from Group C and the top team from group D qualified for the quarter-finals.
From Group A and B, Mumbai, Maharashtra, Delhi, Andhra Pradesh, and Hyderabad advanced to the knockout stage. While from Group C Jharkhand and Haryana qualified along with Bihar from the Group D. Mumbai emerged as the winners of the cup after overcoming Gautam Gambhir’s Delhi by 4 wickets in the final.
The tournament saw brilliant performances from the top cricketers of the nation. Here are the top 7 performers of the season:
#1 Most Runs- Abhinav Mukund (Tamil Nadu)
The 28-year-old from Tamil Nadu emerged as the leading run-scorer of Vijay Hazare Trophy 2018-19. Abhinav Mukund scored 560 runs in 9 matches at a blistering average of 70.
Abhinav started his cricket career at a young age. He emulated the feats of young Sachin Tendulkar by scoring hundreds on his Ranji Trophy debut and Irani Trophy debut. He has also got 2 triple centuries to his name in domestic cricket.
An Indian discard Abhinav emerged as the best batsman of Vijay Hazare Trophy 2018-19. However, he may have to perform well for the next few years to get his place back in the Indian team.
Also Read - Vijay Hazare Trophy Winners