A 123-run partnership between Raj Angad Bawa and Shivam Bhambri helped Chandigarh to dominate Pondicherry by five wickets at the opening encounter of Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 tournament being played at Vizag on Saturday. 

Chandigarh won the toss and invited the opposition to bat first. Puducherry, once struggling at 50/3 was well compensated by centurian Ajay Rohera. . The team scored 183/5 in the stipulated twenty overs as Krishna also scored thirty runs. Sandeep Sharma (2/36) and Nishank Birla (2/43) shared two wickets In reply, Chandigarh had a dismal start with 20/2 when skip Manan Vohra (13) and Arjun Azad (5) left cheaply.

Later, Shivam Bhambri and Raj Angad Bawa joined in the middle to steer the team closer to target. Bawa scored 61 runs off 36 balls with five sixes and three boundaries while Bhambri smashed 69 runs in 48 balls with three sixes and five fours. Chandigarh won the match by five wickets with five balls to spare . Unbeaten Gaurav Puri added 27 runs.

Chandigarh's next match is against Vidarbha on November 25.