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Haryana reached the quarterfinals of the elite Vijay Hazare Trophy, convincingly beating Bengal by 72 runs. A major reason behind this was a great all-round display by a young leg-spinner, Parth Vats, who played both bat and ball with great authority. His combination with another 20-year-old spin all-rounder, Nishant Sindhu, was crucial for turning the match in Haryana’s favor.
Parth Vats and Nishant Sindhu Shine with Bat and Ball
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Vats was the architect of this match, who replaced Yuzvendra Chahal in the team and produced a match-winning all-round performance. Vats scored a crucial 66 runs off 72 balls, which stabilized the innings and helped him along with Nishant Sindhu for the fourth wicket to produce an 84-run partnership.
Sindhu also played a crucial role in the total score, scoring a composed half-century and taking two crucial wickets with the ball. In the lower order, Haryana continued to pile on the runs. Sumit Kumar’s quick-fire 41 runs off 32 balls and Rahul Tewatia’s 29 runs ensured that Haryana pushed their score close to the 300-run mark, setting a challenging target for Bengal.
Mohammad Shami’s Heroics Go in Vain
Even though Haryana put up a strong total, Bengal’s seasoned fast bowler Mohammad Shami played a great match with the ball. Although Shami started his spell by conceding 27 runs in his first three overs without any wickets, he came back very strongly. The 33-year-old pacer took three wickets, two of them coming in the crucial death overs, that prevented Haryana from crossing the 300-run mark.
Bengal’s Batting Collapse
Bengal’s chase started well with openers Sudeep Gharami and Abhishek Porel combining to put up 70 runs in as little as 12.5 overs. However, this charge fizzled out soon after Gharami’s departure, and it only got worse when Indian Test team member Abhimanyu Easwaran walked into bat at number three after having spent two months in Australia without match practice.
Easwaran had hardly any game time and was dismissed by Haryana’s mystery spinner Amit Rana for just 10 runs off 17 balls.
When Porel went for 58 runs off 78 balls, the Bengal middle order collapsed under pressure. Even though there was some resistance from the lower order, Bengal could only manage to score 226 runs before getting bowled out in 43.1 overs, falling short of Haryana’s target by 72 runs.
Quarter-Final Match Against Gujarat
Haryana has managed to win its way into the quarter-finals. They will play against Gujarat on Sunday in an exciting match. With Vats and Sindhu performing so well, Haryana will look forward to taking that momentum into the next round of the tournament, hoping to find a place in the semi-finals.
It was a match of youth talent, and the two emerging players for Haryana were Parth Vats and Nishant Sindhu. Bengal failed to make a strong comeback even after a fine opening partnership with Mohammad Shami as the team suffered a mid-order collapse, and Haryana’s bowling discipline helped them pull off the victory. Haryana has already sealed a quarter-final spot and will continue their good form in the Vijay Hazare Trophy.
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