Andhra Pradesh trounced Orissa by 102 runs in their Ranji trophy Elite Group-B match at Barabati stadium in Cuttack on Monday as the hosts crumbled like a pack of cards.
Facing a stiff target of 327 for a win, Orissa resumed at their overnight score of 32 only to lose early wickets as they were 107 for four at lunch, finding it tough to counter Andhra bowling marked by precision and pace. The visitors won five points with their convincing victory.
The only solace for the hosts was an impressive and patient 66 by Niranjan Behera, who hit eight fours off 174 balls in 218 minutes, as Orissa were restricted to 172 for seven wickets a tea.
Also contributing to Orissa's kitty was a valiant 46 by Debasis Mohanty as he sent seven balls to the fence during his stay of 92 minutes in which he faced 86 balls before being run out by M Suresh. Another Orissa batsman, Haladhar Das, was also run out for two, while four of the the host team batsman failed to muster double digit.
What enabled Andhra to reign was accurate spells by its bowlers, particularly D Kalyan Krishna and G Shankara Rao. Kalyan Krishna captured three wickets from 15 overs as he bowled six maidens to give away only 22 runs.
Equally effective was Shankara Rao, who also grabbed three wickets from 25.1 overs, of which eight were maiden, as he conceded 54 runs. While M Suresh and Vatekar captured one wicket each, two Orissa batsmen were run out.
Orissa (2nd Innings): overnight 32 for no loss
B Pati lbw b M Suresh 10
SS Das b G Sankara Rao 27
N Behera lbw b D Kalyan Krishna 66
P Mullick c A G Pradeep b D Kalyan Krishna 6
S Biswal c and b H Vatekar 7
H Das run out A G Pradeep 2
P Jayachandra b D Kalyan Krishna 18
R Das c Sk Prasad b G Shankara Rao 18
D Mohanty run out M Suresh 46
S Khantua b G Shankara Rao 5
P Das not out 0
Extras: (b- 9, lb-10) 19
Total: (all out in 99.1 overs) 224
Fall of Wickets: 1-36, 2-61, 3-84, 4-101, 5-111, 6-144, 7-149, 8-187, 9-224
Bowling: D Kalyan Krishna 15-6-22-3, P Vijay Kumar 4-1-14-0, G Shankara Rao 25.1-8-54-3, M Suresh 17-10-23-1, Y Ganeshwara Rao 2-0-12-0, Md Faiq 19-4-43-0 H Vatekar 15-4-33-1, ASK Verma 2-1-4-0
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