Punjab 223 for 4 (Anmolpreet 113, Wadhera 61*, Mandeep 32) beat Baroda 203 for 7 (Rajput 61, Rathva 47, Krunal 45, Arshdeep 4-23) by 20 runs

After four missed attempts, Punjab stormed to their maiden Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy title by beating Baroda in a high-scoring thriller in Mohali.

On an error-strewn night where they dropped as many as four catches, including Baroda captain Krunal Pandya thrice, Punjab just about managed to dig deep into their bowling resources under heavy dew to seal victory.

With Punjab needing to defend 32 off 12 with seven wickets in hand for Baroda, Arshdeep Singh delivered a clutch over to turn the scales. He picked up three wickets in five balls, including that of Krunal, to all but kill the contest that had been brewing into a classic.

That Arshdeep over was preceded by Siddarth Kaul conceding a sequence of 6, 0, 4, 4, 4, 6 to raise hopes of an improbable heist chasing 224. But Arshdeep summoned all his experience by varying his pace and lengths to concede just four to all but seal the match in Punjab's favour.

It meant their outstanding batting effort, fuelled by a century from Anmolpreet Singh and a robust unbeaten 27-ball 61 from Nehal Wadhera wasn't consigned to being in a losing cause.

Baroda's dream start

Abhishek Sharma came into the match with every chance of taking over from Riyan Parag as the tournament's highest run-scorer, but chipped the first ball to extra cover to give Soyeb Soparia and Baroda a dream start.

Atit Sheth then got into the game in the fourth over when he responded to a boundary with a superb follow-up to dismiss Prabhsimran Singh. A superb outswinger that drew Prabhsimran forward had him nicking while attempting an expansive drive. Prabhsimran also burnt a review in the process, with snicko confirming a big edge. Punjab were in trouble at 18 for 2.

Mandeep, Anmolpreet break shackles

Mandeep Singh broke the shackles in the sixth over by hitting Sheth for back-to-back boundaries as they soon slipped into run-accumulation mode. Anmolpreet, who until then seemed a tad cautious and off-colour, suddenly picked up pace by playing some outrageous shots. Between overs six and nine, Punjab played just two dots and had finally begun to regather momentum.

Anmolpreet impressed with his bottom-handed power, backing away to shovel yorker-length deliveries to the cover boundary, while equally showing he was adept at the deft touches, like he did off Krunal's left-arm spin. Mandeep and Anmolpreet had added 62 off just 40 when Krunal struck against the run of play. Mandeep's attempt at playing a cute reverse sweep led to him picking out short third.

Wadhera shines, Anmolpreet hits first Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy finals ton

Mandeep's dismissal, though, hardly affected Anmolpreet. A reason for that was Wadhera, the No. 5 batter, hardly took time in settling himself in. He got going almost immediately to ensure Anmolpreet didn't need to slow down. He raised a half-century off 36 balls and then saw Wadhera, who broke through earlier this year during his maiden IPL season with Mumbai Indians, pinch 29 off 11 in a half-century partnership.

Anmolpreet launched Lukman Meriwala, the left-arm seamer, for three sixes in a row in the 17th to make a charge towards the hundred. He eventually got to the landmark in the 19th, making it the first-ever hundred by a batter in a SMAT final, and then ended that over with back-to-back sixes off Soparia. All told, Punjab walloped nine sixes and three fours off their last 21 balls to put up a monstrous score.

Rathva fuels Baroda's charge

Kaul delivered an early breakthrough but Punjab were beginning to be ravaged by a greasy ball as dew quickly took effect. Ninad Rathva began cautiously but switched gears to end the powerplay strongly as he took apart Baltej Singh, who came on as an Impact Player in place of Wadhera, for 16 off his first over. Rathva charged to 47 off 20 before falling to one big shot too many as he ran down the pitch and was stumped off Mayank Markande's slider.

Krunal's slice of luck, Rajput's enterprise

At the halfway mark, Baroda were 89 for 2, but needed a massive second half. A wicket there could've been crucial for Punjab. An opportunity came in the 11th when Baltej forced Krunal into playing a pull from way outside off. It was hit straight down Harpreet Brar's throat but the catch went down.

In the semifinal, Abhimanyusingh Rajput's slower variations and medium pace delivered four massive strikes against Assam. Here in the final, Rajput carried on the batting charge following Rathva's dismissal. He launched Markande for three sixes in the 14th, the last of those bringing up a 36-ball half-century. In the same over, Mandeep put down Krunal to give him a second reprieve as Punjab suddenly showed nerves. An innings that had struggled to get out of second gear until that point - Rajput was on 28 off 29 at one stage - suddenly went into overdrive.

Yet for all that, the asking rate only kept climbing. Going into the last four, Baroda needed 65. When Kaul went for 24 in the 18th, nerves turned into full-blown panic. Krunal was hitting them clean and long, and Baroda sensed a heist. And then Arshdeep rocked up and delivered a clutch over to seal the deal.