Young Nitish Rana gave yet another example of his big-hitting capabilities with a blazing knock of 97 off 40 balls as Delhi piled up a mammoth 236/9, the highest ever total in the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 tournament. A shocked Andhra were bowled out for 125 handing Delhi a massive 111 runs win. In other matches, fast bowler Nathu Singh picked four wickets for just 13 runs, but Team Rajasthan failed to chase 130 against Kerala. A half-century from Hardik Pandya helped Baroda register a win against Railways. Here’s a recap. Group A Himachal Pradesh v Hyderabad: Hyd 140/9 (Ashish Reddy 37, Akshay Chauhan 4/25) beat HP 126/9 (Nikhil Gangta 24, Chama Milind 3/34) by 14 runs Hyderabad successfully defended 140 against Himachal Pradesh to register their first win in the tournament. After No.7, Ashish Reddy gave some direction to Hyderabad innings with his stroke-filled 37 from 29 balls, Hyderabad bowlers led by Chama Milind’s 3/34 did well to restrict Himachal Pradesh to 126/9. An unbroken 10th wicket partnership of 25 runs in eight balls got HP close but the lack of partnerships upfront meant it was too late. For HP, A Chauhan had earlier picked 4/25. Group B Jharkhand v Tripura: Tri146/7 (Rajat Dey 77, Shahbaz Nadeem 3/18) lost to Jha 150/1 (Ishank Jaggi 75*, Virat singh 65) by 9 wickets An opening stand of 103 runs between Ishank Jaggi (75 not out) and Virat Singh (65) and a second wicket partnership of 47 runs meant Jharkhand had little trouble in overcoming Tripura’s 146/7. After Shahbaz Nadeem picked three wickets, the batters responded positively with Virat hitting four sixes and four fours and Ishank slamming three sixes and five fours. Kerala v Rajasthan: Ker 129/7 (Rohan Prem 38, Nathu Singh 4/13) beat Raj (Rajat Bhatia 42*, P Prasanth 3/22) by 18 runs Despite an excellent bowling effort from fast bowler Nathu Singh, who picked four wickets in four overs for just 13 runs, Team Rajasthan failed to overhaul Kerala’s meagre 129/7. Veteran Rajat Bhatia was the lone fighter yet again as he remained not out 42 from 35 balls. Left arm spinner P. Prasanth 3/22 helped Kerala to an improbable victory. Rohan Prem, who was top scorer in Kerala’s innings with 38 also picked up two wickets. Group C Andhra v Delhi: Del 236/9 (Nitish Rana 97, Milind Kumar 58, C. Stephen 5/52 ) beat And 125/10 (S Koripalli 37, Subodh Bhati 2/13) by 111 runs Nitish Rana hit eight sixes and as many fours to power Delhi to a huge total in Alembic Ground, Vadodara. However, the talented left-hander missed out on a century after being bowled in the 17th over by B.Sudhakar. Batting at No.6, Milind Kumar brought up his century in just 25 balls as Andhra bowlers were hit all around the park. Chasing a record total, Andhra chase was punctured by regular fall of wickets as Delhi bowlers Pawan Negi, Subodh Bhati and Shivam Sharma claimed two wickets each. Andhra were bowled out for 125 runs. Earlier, C Stephen had picked five wickets, but also gave away 52 runs. Baroda v Railways: Bar 142/5 (Hardik Pandya 54, Yusuf Pathan 41, R Mali 2/21) beat Rlys 133/6 (Vivek Singh 46, Deepak Hooda 3/23) by 9 runs Hardik Pandya made 54 and Yusuf Pathan contributed with 41 to help Baroda post a challenging 142/5 at at Moti Bagh Stadium, their home ground. The two big hitters shared a 76-run stand for the fourth wicket to put Baroda in front. To their credit, Railways responded well with opener Vivek Singh making 46 to keep the team in the hunt. What they lacked were power hitters as they were left with 17 to get in the final over. They eventually finished at 133/6 with Deepak Hooda claiming 3/23. Group D Maharashtra v Services: Maha159/8 (Nikhil Naik 69, Nitin Yadav 3/50) beat Ser 128/10 ( Soumya Swain 27, Swapnil Gugale 3/18, S Kazi 3/25) by 31 runs Maharashtra registered an easy 31-run victory over Services courtesy a disciplined bowling effort. After Nitin Naik’s 69 that powered Maharashtra to 159/8, the bowlers led by Dominic Muthuswami (2/7) did not allow the batters to get away. Swapnil Gugale and S. Kazi kept it tight, picking three wickets each to bowl Services out for 128 runs in 18.3 overs