Aman Rao, Hyderabad's young opening batter, produced a classy 29-ball 52* during his side's nine-wicket win against Mumbai in SMAT 2025 on Friday (December 12). Chasing a paltry target of 132 at the MCA Stadium in Pune, Hyderabad got to the target inside 12 overs with Tanmay Agarwal's 40-ball 75 being the dominant factor in the run chase.
Agarwal couldn't bat through but his rookie partner did as Rao hammered Tushar Deshpande for a boundary to finish the formalities. The highlight of the chase was the very first over of the Hyderabad innings, bowled by Mumbai's skipper and domestic veteran Shardul Thakur. The pacer, who has also represented multiple IPL teams, got hammered for 24 runs in the only over that he bowled.
The first ball got met with a wristy pick-up stroke that cleared the ropes at deep mid-wicket while the next ball was punched sweetly off the back foot through the covers. Under pressure, Thakur tried to get his line straight but Rao then played a sublime flick wide of mid-on to find the fence.
6⃣,4⃣,4⃣,6⃣,4⃣
— BCCI Domestic (@BCCIdomestic) December 12, 2025
🎥 A fiery start to Hyderabad's run chase in the very first over, courtesy of Aman Rao. 👏
Hyderabad win the contest against Mumbai by nine wickets in Pune.
Scorecard ▶️ https://t.co/RxwfJDx3Ud#SMAT | @IDFCFIRSTBank pic.twitter.com/jsUrECFWGF
Thakur tried to attack the stumps with a fuller delivery but Rao was all swag as he wristed it over long-on for an effortless six. The fifth ball, an attempted yorker, was arguably the only false stroke in the over as Rao's effort to flick found an inside edge that beat short fine leg for a boundary. Fortunately for Thakur, the final delivery ended as a dot ball but he didn't bowl himself again in the match.
Rao has had an excellent start to his domestic career at senior level, having played nine matches already for Hyderabad. His strike rate of 163.09 and average of 39.14 tells the story of a batting prodigy who can marry sizzling strokeplay with the high tempo of T20 cricket.
