Vijay Hazare Trophy: Eden Apple Tom, Baba Aparajith star as Kerala pull off thrilling win over Rajasthan

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Eden Apple Tom played a herculean knock down the order as Kerala pulled off a stunning victory against Rajasthan in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, chasing down a mammoth 344-run target.

Rajasthan posted 343/7 in 50 overs after electing to bat first, but Kerala edged them out by 2 wickets in a nerve-shredding chase that went down to the wire.

Rajasthan's openers faltered early, with Aditya Rathore (25) dismissed by Eden Apple Tom and Ram Chauhan (15) by Ankith Sharma, leaving them at 47/2. Karan Lambha and Deepak Hooda then forged a crucial 171-run stand off 165 balls to steady the innings. Hooda smashed 86 off 83 balls before Babaparajith took a sharp return catch to dismiss him. Lambha anchored the innings unbeaten on 119, while skipper Manav Suthar (21 off 11) and Ajay Singh Kulkani (23 off 15) provided late fireworks. Kerala's Sharafudheen claimed 3 wickets.

In reply, Kerala lost captain Rohan Kunnummal on the first ball. But Baba Aparajith and Krishna Prasad's 155-run second-wicket partnership laid the foundation for them. Krishna Prasad scored 53, and Baba Aparajith hammered an unbeaten 126 off 116 balls (12 fours, 4 sixes).

Mohammad Azharuddeen (28) and Vishnu Vinod (28) followed, but a middle-order wobble saw Kerala slump to 287/7 after 44.5 overs, with Sharafudheen (11) and Salman Nizar (18) departing.

Just when the game slipped away, Ankit Sharma (27) and Eden Apple Tom mounted a blistering counterattack, adding 46 runs off 26 balls. Sharma fell with 11 needed, but Tom stayed cool under pressure, blasting 40* off 18 balls (1 four, 5 sixes) to seal the win on the last ball.

For Rajasthan, Aniket Choudhary took 4 wickets and Manav Suthar got a couple, but couldn't help their team from its fourth defeat in a row. For Kerala, the win was crucial as they lost their last two matches.