Kuldeep wins ‘battle’ against Chawla, but UP lose opener
HAZARE TROPHY In his very second match of domestic career, Chinaman bowler proves his worth
It was a battle of supremacy within the Uttar Pradesh team itself and the better one proved his might in style.
Team India discard and skipper Piyush Chawla took 2/56 at 5.60 per over, whereas debutant China man bowler Kuldeep Yadav finished with 2/26 at 2.60 per over.
Other than them, former India speedster RP Singh bagged 4/50 to kick-start his domestic journey on a positive note, but he couldn’t even stop defending champions Railways from scoring 39-run win against UP in the opening match of the Central Zone Vijay Hazare Trophy at Nagpur on Friday.
Playing just his second domestic match, 29-year-old Delhi batsman Abhishek Kaushik slammed 118-ball 100 with the help of 10 hits to the fence, and even he played cautious shots against the bowling of Yadav, who couldn’t get a match in the abandoned ODI series against West Indies last month despite being in the Team India.
On the contrary, Kaushik as well as experienced keeperbatsman Mahesh Rawat (46, 54b, 4x4) looked comfortable against Chawla’s googles at the placid wicket of the VCA stadium in Jamtha. Kaushik’s 88-run second wicket stand with AN Ghosh (28, 49b, 3x4) consolidated team’s score as Railways finished at 9/255 after being sent to bat first.
Uttar Pradesh’s journey in reply never looked settled as they kept losing wickets on regular intervals. Young Umang Sharma (56, 71b, 5x4) though tried to adorn innings, his run out in the 35th over dashed UP’s hopes. Praveen Kumar’s 20-ball 27, which contained one four and two sixes, down in the batting order, remained the only brighter spot then before UP innings concluded at 216 in 47.4 overs.
Now, UP take on Madhya Pradesh in their second match on Saturday at the VCA stadium in Civil Lines, whereas Railways meet hosts Vidarbha at the VCA stadium in Jamtha. SATHISH, BADRI SHINE
Vidarbha’s outstation professionals Ganesh Sathish and India discard Subramanium Badrinath made significant contribution as t he hosts hammered Rajasthan by 134 runs.
Batting first, Vidarbha posted a commendable 285 in 49.3 overs with Sathish (103) and Badrinath (86) scoring bulk of the runs. For Rajasthan, skipper Pankaj Singh bowled his heart out on an unresponsive pitch to grab six for 50 in 10 overs, PTI adds.