The 2023 edition of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy has reached the knockout stage with Mumbai, Delhi, Baroda, Assam, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Kerala and Vidarbha making it to the quarter-finals. Out of these eight teams, six qualified for the quarters directly while Assam and Uttar Pradesh took the longer route and defeated Bengal and Gujarat respectively in the pre-quarter-finals to make it to the last eight. And the biggest reason for Assam doing so well has been their captain Riyan Parag's form.
Parag, who lit up the last year's Vijay Hazare Trophy with five centuries has gone one level up in the ongoing domestic T20 tournament with seven half-centuries in eight matches and the lowest score being 45. Parag's seven fifties are the most by any batter in Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy history in a single edition. His 39 sixes so far in the tournament are the highest in a single edition of the competition. So far, he is the highest run-getter with 490 runs to his name at an average of 122 and a strike rate of 189.
Parag, who hasn't been able to replicate his domestic form in the IPL in the last few seasons, will be keen to take Assam all the way and it showed in the celebration when he got to his fifty against Bengal in the pre-quarters that how much it meant to him.
Parag, who scored an unbeaten 31-ball 50 came up with a unique celebration that got the fans talking with most of them interpreting it as ''No one is at my level, I am above everyone'. One user said that this celebration was in response to a commentator who allegedly labelled former Assam players as second-class citizens as compared to former Bengal players. The video has gone viral.
Parag has been on the receiving end for his attitude and over-the-top gestures and celebrations, which haven't really translated to performances, especially in the IPL. However, in domestic white-ball tournaments, his performances have been second to none and Parag will be eager to take Assam all the way as the team has been in stupendous form this year.
Assam will be up against Kerala in the quarters, whom they beat earlier in the tournament.
