Niraj Patel struck a 32-ball 40 and shared a 65-run stand with Jesal Karia for the fifth wicket to help Gujarat beat Odisha by three wickets in a Super League (Group A) match of the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 tournament, here today.
Electing to bat at the Emerald Heights ground, Odisha made a competitive 151 for six with Govind Poddar (40) and Subhrajit Sahoo (37) making significant contibutions with the bat.
In reply, Gujarat knocked off the target in 19.4 overs as Patel and Karia (29 off 28 balls) combined well and restructed the innings after the failure of their top-order batting to give their team a winning start.
Gujarat were left tottering at 71 for four in 8.5 overs but Patel and Karia steadied the sinking ship and took the team's total within reach of the target.
For Odisha, Basant Mohanty shone with the ball, picking up three for 27.
Meanwhile, in a Group B match played at the Holkar Stadium here, Karnataka defeated Punjab by two wickets.
Put in to bat, opener Ravi Inder Singh struck a fine 44-ball 60 but the middle-order failed to contribute substantially as Punjab were all out for 129 in 18.1 overs.
For Karnataka, Stuart Binny was the most successful bowler with figures of three for 26.
Chasing 130 runs to win, Manish Pandey and CM Gautam made identical 31 to help their team overhaul the target in 19.4 overs.
For Punjab, Siddarth Kaul, Rajwinder Singh and Rahul Sharma accounted for two wickets apiece.
