If Mumbai begins as an overwhelming favourite to beat Uttar Pradesh and claim its fourth Vijay Hazare (50-over) title, skipper Prithvi Shaw’s irrepressible form is a big reason.
Shaw, with a record aggregate of 754 runs so far, could break the 800-run mark in Sunday’s final at the Ferozeshah Kotla ground. In fact, looking at his run of four centuries — including three in excess of 150 — he could even be expected to go past the 900-run mark.
UP, finalist to Railways in the 2004-05 season, will also have to deal with the form of Shaw’s opening partner Yashasvi Jaiswal (179 runs) and former captain Aditya Tare (181). In addition, experienced medium-pacer Dhawal Kulkarni and leg-spinner Prashant Solanki (14 wickets each) have caused maximum damage this season.
Under a young captain in Karan Sharma, UP is a fairly inexperienced side. But its journey to the final has been inspiring. The way the side rallied from 66 for four to outplay host Delhi was commendable.
Though its top-order has disappointed in the knockout phase, Karan, Akshdeep Nath and Upendra Yadav have rescued the team by displaying fine temperament.
Left-arm spinner Shivam Sharma (20 wickets) could still hold the key for UP but it will be interesting to see how the medium-pacers Yash Dayal, Shivam Mavi and Aaqib Khan deal with Shaw early on in the innings.
