Ajinkya Rahane scored a 56-ball 98 runs to take Mumbai to the final of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2025 at the M.Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Thursday. Mumbai defeated Baroda by six wickets to make it to the mega clash. They will take on the winners of the second semifinal between Madhya Pradesh and Delhi.

The Mumbai bowlers didn’t allow the Baroda batters to break free and restricted the rival team to 158 runs. Hardik Pandya and Krunal Pandya were unable to make meaningful contributions and some lusty blows by Atit Sheth and Shivalik Sharma gave some respectability to Baroda’s total.

The 36-year-old Rahane was unstoppable and smashed the bowlers to all parts of the ground.

His knock has justified Kolkata Knight Riders’ trust in him. KKR paid INR 1.50 crore for his services in the mega auction in Saudi Arabia.

He hit 11 fours and five sixes and is one of the contenders to lead the franchise in IPL 2025. Rahane has managed 366 runs in eight games and is the top scorer in the SMAT 2024.

The final of the tournament will be played on Sunday in Bengaluru.