Who is Akshay Karnewar, The Vidarbha Spinner Who Bowled 4 Maidens in Four Overs in Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy

Vidarbha's bowler Akshay Karnewar achieved the world record for the most economical stats ever bowled in T20 cricket on Monday when he did not give a single run in a Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) encounter against Manipur.

Karnewar, 29, who bowled 4-4-0-2, surpassed Pakistan bowler Mohammad Irfan's record to become the first player in men's T20 cricket to deliver four overs and four maidens.

Karnewar's miserly spell was crucial in Vidarbha's 167-run victory against Manipur in the Plate group encounter. With three matches remaining, Vidarbha leads the division with 16 points, four more than Nagaland, Tripura, and Meghalaya.

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After scoring 222, Vidarbha swept out Manipur for 55 runs to record the second-largest margin of victory in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.

A day later, on Tuesday, Karnewar claimed a hat-trick against Sikkim, with scores of 4-1-5-4. To achieve the record, he removed Codanda Ajit Karthik, captain Kranthi Kumar, and wicketkeeper Ashish Thapa with consecutive balls.

Venkatesh Iyer's stats of 4-2-2-2 in the match between Madhya Pradesh and Bihar are the seventh most economical session bowled in T20 cricket. On Monday, two of the top five spells were bowled in the SMAT.