Yet another edition of the Vijay Hazare Trophy came to a close on Monday with Tamil Nadu clinching the crown by beating Bengal in a low-scoring final at the Feroz Shah Kotla in Delhi.
Dinesh Karthik starred for Tamil Nadu, making a century and then the bowlers raised their game to seal a memorable win for their side.
During the course of the competition, there were some fine individual performers and we pick out the best 5 performers here:
#5 Krunal Pandya
The Baroda all-rounder had a good tournament both with bat and ball, making 366 runs in 8 matches at an average of 45 and picking up 11 wickets in the same number of matches with the ball.
The cricketer proved to be the surprise package for the Mumbai Indians in last year's IPL, where his left-arm spin and left-handed batting proved to be a good foil for the side, to the extent that he got a promotion in the batting line-up as well.
What will be interesting to see is whether he can put in an impressive performance in the second season as well and guide the Mumbai Indians to a third title, thereby making them the most successful team in the League's history.
#4 Kedar Jadhav
The Maharashtra batsman kept his chances of booking a place for the Champions Trophy on an upward curve after having a good Vijay Hazare Trophy, where he made 375 runs in 7 matches at an average of 53.
The middle-order is never an easy place to bat, since you could come in with 35 overs left or with 20 overs left or even 1 over left.
Hence, it is vital to make the most of the chances that one gets at such times and during the course of the competition, Jadhav did that and more. If there is any indications as to where he would bat from the series against England if picked for India, he could play in the Number 6 position.
It now remains to be seen if he make the same kind of impact in England in June as he did in India in January.
Also Read: 2017 Vijay Hazare Trophy: Team of the Tournament
#3 Aswin Crist
One of the key performers in Tamil Nadu's triumph in the competition, Aswin Crist finished as the highest wicket-taker in the tournament, with 20 scalps in 9 matches at an average of 17.65.
The 22-year-old also had a good Ranji Trophy season, where he took 35 wickets in 10 matches at 27.60.
Crist may not be in the reckoning for a place in the Indian squad right now, but perhaps if he does have a good year for Tamil Nadu in the upcoming season, he could be someone who would find a mention in selection meetings.
#2 Abhimanyu Easwaran
The Bengal opener had a great time with the bat, making 472 runs in 9 matches at an average of 80, including two hundreds and two fifties.
The right-hander's best performance came in the semifinal stage of the competition, where he made a hundred against Jharkhand to help his side post a big total on the board, that eventually proved to be too much for the opposition.
Eswaran could not make a big impact on finals day despite having to chase a small total and he will hope to get back to run-scoring ways if picked in any of the three sides for the Deodhar Trophy next week.
#1 Dinesh Karthik
The Tamil Nadu wicket-keeper had a terrific run in the competition, where he made 495 runs in 8 matches including two centuries at an average of 82.50.
In the absence of experienced pros like Abhinav Mukund, the 31-year-old had to step up his game and that is exactly what he did as his side reached the final of the competition.
Karthik last played for India in 2014 after, a superb season of IPL in 2013 that also led to his selection to the Champions Trophy in England, that year.
With the new regime of selectors willing to pick players on current form despite having not represented India for a while, Karthik would hope to have a good season of IPL for the Gujarat Lions and bring himself back in the reckoning for a place in the Indian squad.
(In pictures) Dinesh Karthik loses wicket via hit-wicket on a wide delivery
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