SMAT 2025-26, Group C: Abhishek Sharma’s record-breaking ton nulls Abhimanyu Easwaran’s desperate century

Form is temporary, class is permanent. It’s a cheesy adage, but it always finds a way to be relevant in the madness that is cricket. Ask Abhishek Sharma.

With 10 runs across two Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy matches, including a duck in the Super Over, runs had been hard to come by for the 25-year-old. But, on a cold November morning in Hyderabad, Abhishek took little time to set the turf on fire at the Gymkhana Ground, transcending Punjab’s clash with Bengal into a cinematic melodrama.

In ‘home’ conditions, Abhishek schooled Bengal’s bowlers, including his former Sunrisers Hyderabad teammate Mohammed Shami. He brought up his 50 in 12 balls and 100 in 32, before falling just short of 150, his blitz helping Punjab become the first team to cross the 300-run mark in T20s in the City of Pearls.

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Abhishek was ably supported by Prabhsimran Singh, their 205-run stand, the highest by an opening pair in SMAT, fuelled an already raucous crowd, forcing the deployment of additional security. 

Abhimanyu Easwaran’s unbeaten 130 for Bengal went in vain against Punjab.
| Photo Credit:
K.V.S. Giri

Abhimanyu Easwaran was the lone bright spot in a Bengal chase where its batters looked befuddled. Punjab plucked wickets from the other end as easily as snatching candy from a toddler, with nine batters falling for single-digit scores. Easwaran’s lone battle, meanwhile, saw him finish with an unbeaten 130 (66 balls, 13×4, 8×6), but he couldn’t save his side from a 112-run drubbing.

Services trump Pondicherry; Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh win

Later, Services defeated Pondicherry in a low-scorer. Put in to bat, Pondicherry lost both openers to run outs and struggled to rebuild. The 110-run target was chased down with ease by Services, with skipper Mohit Ahlawat’s unbeaten 46 taking the team over the line in just 13.5 overs.

At the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Saurav Chauhan’s knock (81 n.o., 52b, 9×4, 2×6) helped Gujarat beat Haryana by four wickets. Both teams failed to capitalise on the normally batter-friendly track. 

The same applied later in the day. Himachal Pradesh rode on Innesh Mahajan’s half-century to set Baroda a 143-run target. The 52-run opening stand between Shashwat Rawat and Vishnu Solanki ensured that the fumbles ended up as mere footnotes in the five-wicket win.

Published on Nov 30, 2025