KOLKATA: Odisha recovered from a first day, first-innings debacle to earn a memorable 238-run win against Himachal Pradesh in their Ranji Trophy Elite Group D encounter at DRIEMS Ground in Tangi near Cuttack on Monday.
All out for a paltry 138 on the opening day, the hosts set HP a 388-run target for an outright win and Odisha pace spearhead Rajesh Mohanty sparked a middle-order collapse with a five-for to help the home side to their first victory of Ranji Trophy this season. Mohanty took eight wickets in the match.
However, if Mohanty led Odisha to victory on the last day, it was in-form opener Sandeep Pattnaik's 150 which helped the Shantanu Mishra-led side lay the platform by putting up 425 for 8 declared in their second essay. Pattnaik was adjudged man of the match for his second successive century, following an unbeaten ton against J&K in losing cause in their last match.
Starting the day on overnight score of 33 for one, Himachal lost the remaining nine wickets for just 88 runs on the final day to succumb to a huge loss. Mohanty returned 20-5-33-5 while veteran Biplab Samantray took 2/25 and pacers Debabrata Pradhan, Sunil Roul and left-arm orthodox spinner Harshit Rathod took one wicket apiece to skittle Himachal for a mere 149 in their second innings. The visiting side had scored 176 in their first essay.
Overnight unbeaten batter, Prashant Chopra, waged a lone battle with 57, while the next best scorers were captain Ankit Kalsi (27) and Extra (13), which sums up the plight of Himachal in front of a controlled seam bowling by Odisha.
Brief scores (Group D, in Cuttack): Odisha 138 & 425/8 decl. Himachal Pradesh 176 & (o/n 33/1) 149 in 57.4 overs (P Chopra 57; R Mohanty 5/33). Odisha won by 238 runs. Points: Odisha 6, Himachal Pradesh 0
