Trivandrum: Odisha produced a magnificent display to beat Madhya Pradesh by 6 wickets in their CK Nayudu Trophy Elite Group C match at St Xavier’s KCA cricket ground here on Friday.
It was a much-needed win for Odisha to stay in the hunt for knockout berth, after having suffered an innings defeat to Jharkhand in the opener.
In their final league fixture, Odisha will face Hyderabad from April 5-8.
Left-arm spinner Saurabh Kanojia was the chief architect of Odisha’s victory, bagging seven wickets conceding 66 runs in the second innings as Odisha skittled out MP for a paltry 166. It was all the more satisfying for Saurabh as he had gone wicketless in the first innings.
He received admirable support from Krishna Palai, another left-arm spinner, who returned figures of 3/38 after having picked up 2 wickets in the first innings.
Set a moderate victory target of 98 runs, Odisha were jolted by two early dismissals. First-innings centurion Gaurav Choudhary failed to open his account while No. 3 Sourav Gouda fell for 8 as Odisha were reduced to 15 for 2.
But opener M Prasanth and Kartik Biswal put their heads down to ensure there would be no collapse. The duo added 66 runs to take Odisha within striking distance of victory before both got our in quick succession. Prasanth followed up his first-innings half-century with a strokeful 49 (5 fours, 2 sixes), while Biswal – who scored 91 in the first essay – made a crucial 28.
Aashirwad Swain (17 not out) and Anil Parida (1 not out) completed the formalities for Odisha.
Scores: MP 331 and 166. Odisha 400 and 102/4.
Result: Odisha won by 6 wickets.
