Krunal Pandya smashes 109 as Baroda post 417/4 against Hyderabad

Baroda captain Krunal Pandya produced a commanding batting display, smashing an unbeaten 109 off 63 balls, as Baroda piled up a massive 417/4 against Hyderabad in their Vijay Hazare Trophy encounter on Wednesday.

The left-handed all-rounder, who is also the elder brother of India star Hardik Pandya, anchored Baroda’s innings with a blend of power and composure, finding the boundary at will to put the Hyderabad bowlers under sustained pressure.

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Krunal currently leads the Baroda side and has been a consistent performer in domestic cricket. He was involved in a key partnership with Bhanu Pania, who chipped in with an unbeaten 42 off 27 balls. Hyderabad, in response, are currently batting in pursuit of the daunting 418-run target.

Meanwhile, Hardik Pandya is likely to turn out for Baroda in their next two Vijay Hazare Trophy matches against Vidarbha and Chandigarh. As part of workload management, the Indian all-rounder has been rested from the three-match ODI series against New Zealand in January and will partake in the domestic matches.

Krunal Pandya also represents Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the Indian Premier League and was a key figure in RCB’s maiden IPL title win in 2025. He delivered a match-winning bowling performance in the final, earning the Player of the Match award. With that feat, Krunal became the first player in IPL history to win the Player of the Match award in two different finals—previously achieving the honour with Mumbai Indians in 2017.

On the international stage, Krunal made headlines in March 2021, when he smashed the fastest ODI half-century by a debutant, reaching the milestone in just 26 balls against England.

Hyderabad (Playing XI): Tanmay Agarwal, Abhirath Reddy, Pragnay Reddy(w), Aelgani Varun Goud, Aman Rao Perala, K Nitesh Reddy, Chama V Milind(c), Tanay Thyagarajan, Arfaz Ahmed Mohammad, Nitin Sai Yadav, Chinntla Rakshan Readdi

Baroda (Playing XI): Jitesh Sharma(w), Priyanshu Moliya, Krunal Pandya(c), Vishnu Solanki, Bhanu Pania, Atit Sheth, Raj Limbani, Nitya Pandya, Karan Umatt, Amit Pasi, Mahesh Pithiya