Vijay Hazare Trophy 2025-26 quarterfinals: Mumbai faces Karnataka in high-profile clash, Delhi favourite vs Vidarbha
The outing, worthy of a final, came about as a result of Mumbai’s shocking collapse against Punjab in its last Elite Group ‘C’ match at Jaipur on Thursday. The loss pushed Mumbai to second spot, robbing the side the chance to finish on top and face Madhya Pradesh in the last-eight.
Karnataka and Mumbai will miss a few key players. For the home side, K.L. Rahul and pacer Prasidh Krishna are absent, having been called up for India duty, while Mumbai must make do without Shreyas Iyer and an injured Shardul Thakur.
Karnataka, which dominated Elite Group ‘A’ with six wins in seven matches, boasts a strong batting unit. Devdutt Padikkal, the leading run-scorer of the tournament, is in red-hot form. Captain Mayank Agarwal is another top-order threat, with two centuries and two fifties under his belt. Karun Nair started the campaign well, but has not clicked in the last three games.
Mumbai’s batting hopes rest on Sarfaraz Khan, who possesses a marauding tournament strike rate of 190.56. Sarfaraz’s 20-ball 62 against Punjab put Mumbai in a winning position, before his teammates Shreyas, Suryakumar Yadav and Shivam Dube let the giant down.
ALSO READ: Mumbai knows how to perform in knockouts – Stand-in skipper Siddhesh Lad
At the adjacent BCCI CoE (2) ground, a strong Uttar Pradesh faces Saurashtra. Dhruv Jurel, Aryan Juyal and captain Rinku Singh have been among the runs for Uttar Pradesh, and are backed by quality all-rounders in Sameer Rizvi and Prashant Veer.
Saurashtra has unearthed two standout performers in middle-order batter Sammar Gajjar and fast bowler Ankur Panwar. The more experienced opening pair of Harvik Desai and Vishvaraj Jadeja can make the most of the even-paced BCCI CoE pitch.
On Tuesday, Delhi starts as the favourite against Vidarbha in the third quarterfinal. Delhi, which put on a string of commanding shows in the Elite Group ‘D’ matches held here, counts on a terrific pace trio – Ishant Sharma, Prince Yadav and Navdeep Saini – to blast through the opposition line-up.
Knockout schedule
Monday
Karnataka v Mumbai (QF1), BCCI CoE (1);
Uttar Pradesh v Saurashtra (QF2), BCCI CoE (2)
Tuesday
Punjab v Madhya Pradesh (QF3), BCCI CoE (1);
Delhi v Vidarbha (QF4), BCCI CoE (2)
(Quarterfinal matches start at 9 a.m)
Semifinals
Jan 15: Winner of QF1 v Winner of QF4, BCCI CoE (1)
Jan 16: Winner of QF2 v Winner of QF3, BCCI CoE (1)
Final
Jan 18: BCCI CoE (1)
(Semifinals and final start at 1.30 p.m)
Published on Jan 11, 2026
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