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Tamil Nadu became the latest name on the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy winners list after the Vijay Shankar-led team won the Indian domestic T20 tournament in the 2021-22 season by beating Karnataka in the final by four wickets.
The 38 teams, that play the Ranji Trophy, also take part in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy every year. There have only been eight different winners since the 2006-07 season when the domestic T20 championship had first started, being named after former Indian Test cricketer Syed Mushtaq Ali.
In the early days, the T20 tournament was named Inter-State T20 Championship with the format being 27 Ranji teams segregated into five zones. Later, it was revamped as Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
The BCCI has continuously changed the format of the tournament since its inception. The initial format was inter-zonal, with the knockout stage seeing winners and runners-up of each zone fighting for it. That changed in the 2012-13 season when the elimination stage was modified into a Super League. The latest format saw the zonal winners and runners-up getting categorized into two groups. Following that the two group winners clashed in the final.
However, after the 2016-17 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy remained strictly a zonal competition, where the Super League had combined zonal teams rather than the usual format of zonal winners, the Indian cricket board decided to change it again. The current format is what has been since the 2017-18 season.
The latest format of the competition features 38 sides – all the domestic teams – divided into six groups unevenly. There are five elite groups having six teams each, and one plate group comprising of eight teams. The next stage sees the top-ranked teams from the elite and plate groups advance into the knockouts. To fill the remaining slots, the best two performing teams from the five elite groups also progress to the knockouts to make it an eight-team affair.
Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy Winners List: From 2006 to 2021
| Year | Winner | Score | Runners-Up | Score | Result | Winning Captain |
| 2021 | Tamil Nadu | 153/6 | Karnataka | 151/7 | Tamil Nadu won by 4 wickets | Vijay Shankar |
| 2020/21 | Tamil Nadu | 123/3 | Baroda | 120/9 | Tamil Nadu won by 7 wickets | Dinesh Karthik |
| 2019/20 | Karnataka | 180/5 | Tamil Nadu | 179/6 | Karnataka won by 1 run | Manish Pandey |
| 2018/19 | Karnataka | 159/2 | Maharashtra | 155/4 | Karnataka won by 8 wickets | Manish Pandey |
| 2017/18 | Delhi | 153/6 | Rajasthan | 112 | Delhi won by 41 runs | Pradeep Sangwan |
| 2016/17 | East Zone | – | Central Zone | – | – | Manoj Tiwary |
| 2015/16 | Uttar Pradesh | 163/7 | Baroda | 125/7 | Uttar Pradesh won by 38 runs | Suresh Raina |
| 2014/15 | Gujarat | 123/8 | Punjab | 117/9 | Gujarat won by 2 wickets | Manprit Juneja |
| 2013/14 | Baroda | 144/7 | Uttar Pradesh | 141/7 | Baroda won by 3 runs | Aditya Waghmode |
| 2012/13 | Gujarat | 128/4 | Punjab | 122/8 | Gujarat won by 6 wickets | Parthiv Patel |
| 2011/12 | Baroda | 149/6 | Punjab | 141/8 | Baroda won by 8 runs | Pinal Shah |
| 2010/11 | Bengal | 142/7 | Madhya Pradesh | 141/8 | Bengal won by 1 run | Manoj Tiwary |
| 2009/10 | Maharashtra | 119 | Hyderabad | 100 | Maharashtra won by 19 runs | Rohit Motwani |
| 2006/07 | Tamil Nadu | 135/8 | Punjab | 134/8 | Tamil Nadu won by 2 wickets | Dinesh Karthik |
Dinesh Karthik-led Tamil Nadu were the first Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy winners
SMAT was a zonal based competition in the 2006-07 season. Starting in the south zone alongside Karnataka, Hyderabad, Goa, Andhra and Kerala, Tamil Nadu had finished atop the zone table winning all five of their grouop games. They are then placed into the Super League Group B alongside Mumbai, Bengal, Haryana and Madhya Pradesh where they finished at the top to face the other Super League group winners Karnataka in the tournament finale. The summit clash, which took place at Mumbai’s Brabourne Stadium, was a low scoring affair with Tamil Nadu chasing down the target of 135 easily to win the inaugural season of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. The tournament would later start after a gap of three years in the 2009-10 season
Tamil Nadu becomes most successful team in Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy tournament
After their maiden win in the domestic T20 championship in the inaugural Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy season, it had taken Tamil Nadu 11 more seasons to win their second title. Interestingly, it came under the leadership of Dinesh Karthik again. Clubbed into Group B alongside Bengal, Jharkhand, Assam, Hyderabad and Odissa in the 2020-21 SMAT season, Tamil Nadu would again finish atop the group table winning all their five matches.
Following that, they would go on to beat Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan in the quarter-final and semi-final before facing Baroda in the summit clash. The final woul remain a low-scoring affair with TN all out for 123 runs while batting first. However, to their surprise, Baroda would crumble fast and fail to chase down 124 runs in 20 overs.
Tamil Nadu became the only team to win successive titles in the SMAT in the 2021 season. Vijay Shankar replaced Dinesh Karthik as TN’s captain and the team didn’t have a flawless start either after being grouped with Maharashtra, Goa, Puducherry, Punjab and Odisha. They faltered in one of their group game as well which required them to win the last match at any cost to qualifying for the quarterfinal stage.
However, their journey remained smooth in the knockout stages as Tamil Nadu defeated Kerala and Hyderabad in quarterfinal and semi-final respectively. Tamil Nadu faced familiar foes Karnataka in the final where Narayan Jagadeesan’s 41-run knock helped the side chase down the target of 152 runs in 20 overs.
Highest individual score in Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy
The highest individual score in Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy belongs to Meghalaya’s Puneet Bisht, who had garnered an impressive 155 runs against Mizoram in Chennai during the 2021 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
The second-highest individual score in SMAT belongs to Kolkata Knight Riders skipper Shreyas Iyer. He had scored 147 against Sikkim while playing for Mumbai in Indore during the 2019 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
The third-highest individual score in Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy is held by Mohammed Azharuddeen, while playing for Kerala against Mumbai last year.
Highest team score in Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy
The highest team score in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy is scored by Karnataka in 2019 when the South-Indian team had posted a massive total of 250 runs in just 20 overs. Batting first, Karnataka had opener Devdutt Padikkal scoring a 43-balls-75 before skipper Manish Pandey played a blistering knock of an unbeaten 129 runs in just 54 balls. Karnataka had hit 16 boundaries and 23 sixes during their innings. Services were all wrapped up for 170 runs.
Below is the list the top five highest team score in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
| Score | By | Against | Venue | Year |
| 250/3 | Karnataka | Services | Dr PVG Raju ACA Sports Complex | 2019 |
| 243/3 | Mumbai | Punjab | Lalabhai Contractor Stadium | 2019 |
| 233/3 | Gujarat | Kerala | Emerald High School Ground | 2013 |
| 233/7 | Saurashtra | Vidarbha | Holkar Cricket Stadium | 2021 |
| 230/6 | Meghalaya | Mizoram | Guru Nanak College Ground | 2021 |
Lowest team score in Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy
The lowest team score in SMAT is held by Tripura while facing Jharkhand in the 2009 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. Batting first Tripura were all out for just 30 runs in 11.1 overs. Tripura’s scorecard had four ducks with no batsman reaching double figures. Chasing the target of 31, Jharkhand wrapped up proceedings in just 3.2 overs.
Below is the list the top five lowest team score in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
| Score | By | Against | Venue | Year |
| 30 | Tripura | Jharkhand | Railway Stadium | 2009 |
| 44 | Assam | Delhi | Moti Bagh Stadium | 2016 |
| 49 | Sikkim | Gujarat | Lalbhai Contractor Stadium | 2019 |
| 55 | Manipur | Tamil Nadu | Greenfield International Stadium | 2019 |
| 55 | Manipur | Vidarbha | Andhra Cricket Association Stadium | 2021 |
FAQs
What was the Syed Mushtaq Ali trophy winners list 2021?
Tamil Nadu became the latest name to be added in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy Winners list 2021 after they defeated Karnataka in the season final to lift the trophy.
What was the result of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2021 final?
The Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2021 final saw Tamil Nadu beat state rivals Karnataka by four wickets, as they defended a slim target of 154 brilliantly.
Which captain won the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy most time?
Dinesh Karthik (Tamil Nadu), Manish Pandey (Karnataka) and Manoj Tiwary(Bengal, East Zone) have all won the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy twice, which is the most number of times.
What are the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy teams?
The current format of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy has as many as 38 teams competing for the title. They are Andhra Pradesh, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Baroda, Bengal, Bihar, Chandigarh, Chhattisgarh, Delhi, Goa, Gujarat, Haryana, Himachal Pradesh, Hyderabad, Jammu and Kashmir, Jharkhand, Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Manipur, Meghalaya, Mizoram, Mumbai, Nagaland, Odisha, Puducherry, Punjab, Railways, Rajasthan, Saurashtra, Services, Sikkim, Tamil Nadu, Tripura, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Vidarbha.
