Uthappa shines in India Blue win

Robin Uthappa slammed a fluent 94 to steer defending champions India Blue to 49-run win over India Red in the opening match of the NKP Salve Trophy Challenger Series at Barabati Stadium here on Thursday night. Chasing a competitive target of 240, India Red failed to capitalise on M Vijay`s defiant 89 to be dismissed for 186 in 45.3 overs. Tamilnadu opener Vijay waged a courageous fight at one end, while wickets fell one after another at the other Vijay put on 78 runs for the fifth wicket with Manoj Tiwari (45) before being caught at long-on off the bowling of R Awhwin. Off-spinner Ashwin emerged as the most successful India Blue bowler, bagging three wickets for 27 runs. India Red will meet India Green in the next match tomorrow. Earlier India Blue made 239 for nine in the stipulated 50 overs after electing to bat. The star-studded India Blue failed to live up to their reputation as captain Yuvraj Singh, who was aiming to return to form with a double hundred, Virat Kholi and Dinesh Karthik got out cheaply. A cameo knock of 43 by Irfan Pathan helped them reach the respectable total. Showing good footwork and timing, Uthappa hit nine fours and a six in his 106-ball knock. In association with Ajinkya Rahane (28), Uthappa gave India Blue a fine start by garnering 87 runs for the opening wicket. That proved to be the best partnership of the innings. Wickets fell at regular intervals as India Red fought back with tight bowling and enthusiastic fielding. India Red`s new ball bowlers Pravin Kumar and Laxmipathy Balaji, of course, moved the ball a bit. But the movement was possible more because of the overcast condition. The duo picked up two wickets each as did off-spinner MB Parmar. India Red`s batting order seemed to crumble after the dismissal of M Vijay who, for a brief time was on the verge of turning the game around for them. After an affluent knock of 89 from 107 deliveries that included nine fours and two sixes. With host Orissa Cricket Association making the match an entry-free event, a large crowd thronged the stadium. SCORE BOARD INDIA BLUE: Robin Uthappa c Tiwari b Sharma 94 (106b, 4x9, 1x6) A Rahane c Chawla b Balaji 28 (47b, 4x4) Yuvraj Singh c Badrinath b V Kumar 6 (7b, 4x1) V Kohli c & b Parmar 18 (27b, 4x1) D Karthik c Patel b Parmar 0 (2b 0x4 0x6) R Inder b Balaji 17 (38b) I Pathan c M Tiwari bt P Kumar 43 (44b, 4x4, 6x1) R Ashwin b Chawla 11 (20b) P Sangwan b P Kumar 2 (6b) C Nanda (not out) 1 (1b) S Trivedi (not out) 3 (2b) Extras (lb-11, w-1) 12 Total (9 wkts, 50 overs ) 239 Fall of wickets: 1/87, 2/94, 3/132, 4/132, 5/165, 6/191, 7/222, 8/231, 9/231 Bowling: Pravin Kumar 10-0-34-2 L Balaji 10-0-51-2 R Vinay Kumar 7-0-30-1 Piyush Chawla 10-0-54-1 MB Parmar 10-1-36-2 Rohit Sharma 3-0-19-1 INDIA RED: P Patel c & b Pathan 6 (12b, 4x1) M Vijay c Sangwan b Ashwin 89 (107b, 4x9, 6x2) P Chawla c Karthik b Sangwan 9 (9b, 6x1) S Badrinath lbw b Nanda 10 (25b, 4x1) R Inder b Trivedi 2 (6b) M Tiwari not out 45 (74b, 4x1) A Nayar st Karthik b Yuvraj 1 (3b) P Kumar b Ashwin 2 (6b) R Vinay Kumar lbw Nanda 5 (15b) L Balaji b Ashwin 1 (7b) M Parmar Extras () Total (all out, 45.3 overs) 186 Fall of wickets: 1/18, 2/27, 3/63, 4/66, 5/144, 6/149, 7/158, 8/177, 9/178 Bowling: I Pathan 6.3-2-24-1 P Sangwan 6-1-17-1 SK Trivedi 6-1-27-1 R Uthappa 1-0-11-0 C Nanda 8-0-35-2 Yuvraj Singh 8-0-35-1 R Ashwin 10-0-27-3

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