CHANDIGARH: Riding on an all-round show from Arbab Iqbal and an excellent half century from skipper Raj Angad Bawa, Chandigarh tasted their first win of the season after defeating Himachal Pradesh by five wickets in a Vinoo Mankad Trophy (Under -19) league match being played in New Delhi on Wednesday.
Chasing a below-par target of 171, Chandigarh were in a spot of bother, before captain Bawa (55 not out) and Iqbal (42 not out) bailed the team out with a defiant 75-run partnership to bring up their maiden victory of the season.
Chandigarh's chase began on a forgettable note, losing Mohit Mehra (7) to a needless confusion between the two openers, before Harnoor Singh and Pratham Sodhi took charge of the proceedings by forging a 54-run second wicket stand that stabilized the innings. By the 20th over, Chandigarh were comfortably placed at 54 for 1, and were on course to reach the target.
However, the inexperience of the side took a toll on the batters, as both Pratham and Harnoor departed in quick succession, after scoring identical 21, that almost triggered a mini collapse of sorts, with the next two bat Paras Amarjit (14) and Alam Bakshi (6) also failing to get going, and the team was reduced to 96 for 5 in 34 overs. Thereafter, Bawa and Iqbal got their act together and got Chandigarh over the line with two overs to spare.
Earlier, Himachal Pradesh were off to a cautious 61-run start in 20 overs after being put in to bat. However, the introduction of Mohit Mehra into the bowling attack, helped Chandigarh draw first blood with the scalp of Atul Jaswal, who was well set on 25 runs. Himachal were immediately dealt with two more jolts, and were reduced to 79 for 3, before Mridul Surroch and Vaibhav Kalta paired up for 60 runs to steer the innings to 139 for four by the 39th over.
However, the trio of Paras Amarjit (3/28), Arbab Iqbal (3/35) and Mohit Mehra (2/16) did not allow the later order batters to flourish and were successful in containing the opposition to just 170 runs in their stipulated 50 overs.
Chandigarh will next take on Tamil Nadu on Friday.
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