Patra, Pradhan streer Odisha to win over Punjab

Hosts Odisha bounced back into the title race of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy T20 Tournament, scripting a five-wicket win over Punjab in their Group B super league match at DRIEMS Stadium in Tangi (Cuttack) today. This was the second win in three matches for East Zone champions Odisha, who joined Rajasthan and Punjab at the top of the group table.
Among the notable Odisha performers, left-arm spinner Shesdeep Patra and Suryakant Pradhan stood out with a three-wicket haul and an eight-ball unbeaten 22 respectively. The duo must have caught the attention of national selectors, who are here to spot raw or fresh talents from this tournament.
It was Patra`s clever bowling that helped the home team restrict the opposition total to less than 150. Coming into the team as a replacement, he has collected nine wickets in three matches so far.
Though Pradhan is a new-ball bowler, it is his explosive batting which has turned him into a trump card for the team. With Odisha needing 30 runs in the last four overs, Pradhan struck three huge sixes to cap the win with 11 balls to go.
A firebrand cricketer, 21-year-old Pradhan earlier hit an eight-ball unbeaten 28 against Rajasthan and a seven-ball 20 against Mumbai. A specialist in hitting sixes, he boasts a strike rate of 212.30. Earlier, Odisha overcame a vulnerable start thanks to a 76-run partnership for the third wicket between top scorer Anurag Sarangi and Abhilash Mallick.
SCOREBOARD
PUNJAB: Jaskaranveer Singh c Mangaraj b Patra 32, Manan Vohra (run out) 34, Mandeep Singh c Pradhan b Patra 11, Gurkeeran Mann c Podder b Patra 17, Himanshu Chawla (not out) 37, Gurinder Singh c Patra b J Behera 5, Taruwar Kohli (not out) 1; Extras (b-1, lb-2, w-3) 6
Total (5 wkts; 20 overs) 143
Fall of wickets: 1-51, 2-76, 3-89, 4-114, 5-131
Bowling: Suryakant Pradhan 4-0-27-0, Deepak Behera 4-0-26-0, Alok Mangaraj 2-0-24-0, Jayant Behera 2-0-12-1, Biplab Samantaray 4-0-18-0, Shesdeep Patra 4-0-33-3
ODISHA: Anurag Sarangi b S Sharma 45, P Roshan Kumar Rao c S Sharma b S Gill 0, Govind Podder c T Kohli b S Gill 5, Abhilash Mallick b M Singh 41, Aravind Singh c S Shrma b Kaul 2, Biplab Samantaray (not out) 22, Suryakant Pradhan (not out) 22; Extras (lb-2, w-5) 7
Total (5 wkts; 18.1 overs) 144
Fall of wickets: 1-1, 2-9, 3-85, 4-90, 5-112
Bowling: Shubek Gill 4-0-47-2, Sandeep Sharma 4-0-15-1, Taruwar Kohli 1-0-5-0, Gurkeerat Singh 2-0-13-0, Gurinder Singh 2-0-19-0, Mandeep Singh 2-0-11-1

RAJASTHAN DUMP HYDERABAD: Rajasthan registered their second straight win in Group A, trouncing Hyderabad by 86 runs at DRIEMS Stadium. Chasing a daunting target of 184, Hyderabad tottered at 26 for five and eventually caved in for 97 with nine balls still to be bowled.
Pacer Aniket Choudhary destroyed the Hyderabad top-order, scalping three wickets for 10 runs. Complimenting Choudhary, Ashok Menaria and Chandrapal Singh picked up a brace each. Captain Hanuma Vihari waged a lone battle for Hyderabad, hitting 28-ball 46.
Earlier put into bat, Rajasthan rode on a 82-run between openers Suryaprakash Suwalka and Ankit Lamba to raise an imposing total of 183 for seven. Suwalka cracked a 32-ball 50, while scored 44 off 32 balls. Rajesh Bishnoi also enjoyed the run-feast, hitting a 26-ball 31.
Brief score: Rajasthan 183/7 in 20 overs (Suryaprakash Suwalka 50, Ankit Lamba 44, Rajesh Bishnoi 31; Pagadala Naidu 2/27, Chama Milind 2/30, Ashish Reddy 2/41) beat Hyderabad 97 in 18.3 overs (Hanuma Vihari 46; Aniket Choudhary 3/10, Ashok Menaria 2/18, Chandrapal Singh 2/22) by 86 runs.

MP ANNIHILATE ANDHRA: Central Zone champions Madhya Pradesh handed out a nine-wicket drubbing to Andhra in a Group A match at KIIT Cricket Ground in Bhubaneswar on Friday. Put into bat, Mohammad Kaif-led Andhra made a meek surrender as they were bundled out for 58 after getting reduced to 35 for eight. Only three of their batsmen reached double figures, while four failed to open account.
Left-arm seamer Anurag Singh was the wrecker-in-chief of the Andhra innings, capturing three wickets for eight runs. Zafar Ali was another notable performer for MP, taking four catches behind the stumps. MP overhauled the target in 6.4 overs with Jalaj Saxena staying unbeaten on 26 and captain Mohnish Mishra getting dismissed after making 23. This was the second win for MP and they joined Gujarat at the top of Group A table with eight points.
Brief score: Andhra 58 in 16.4 overs (Anurag Singh 3/8, Puneet Datey 2/11) lost to Madhya Pradesh 59/1 in 6.4 overs (Jalaj Saxena 26 n.o, Mohnish Mishra 23) by 9 wkts.

THIRD DEFEAT FOR JHARKHAND: Jharkhand experienced the ignominy of three defeats in a row as they lost to Himachal Pradesh by 12 runs in the second Group B match of the day at KIIT Stadium. Riding on opener Ankush Bains` 50-ball 41 and his 66-run stand for the second wicket with Prashant Chopra, Himachal made 130 for three and then restricted Jharkhand to 118 for eight. Bipul Sharma was the most successful bowler for Himachal, bagging three wickets for 21 runs.
Brief score: Himachal Pradesh 130/3 in 20 overs (Ankush Bains 41, Prashant Chopra 30, Paras Dogra 28 n.o) beat Jharkhand 118/8 in 20 overs (Ishan Kishan 32, Rituraj Singh 20; Bipul Sharma 3/21, Pankaj Jaiswal 2/11) by 12 runs.
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PHOTO: Odisha big-hitter Suryakant Pradhan (L) gets pat from his captain Biplab Samantaray after their win over Punjab in Cuttack on April 3, 2014.