Assam lose to Bengal in Vijay Hazare Trophy

Our Sports Reporter

GUWAHATI: Assam suffered an 85-run defeat against Bengal in their Vijay Hazare Trophy match played at Rajkot on Saturday. Chasing a stiff target of 302, Assam were bowled out for 217 in 42.1 overs.

Batting first after being invited, Bengal posted a competitive 302 for 7 in their allotted 50 overs. Skipper Abhimanyu Easwaran anchored the innings with a solid knock, scoring fluently before being dismissed at 102 by Avinav Choudhury after facing 116 balls and striking 10 boundaries. Shahbaz Ahmed played a crucial unbeaten innings of 66, which included six fours and two sixes. For Assam, Akash Sengupta, Avinav Choudhury and Rahul Singh claimed two wickets apiece.

Assam’s chase got off to a poor start with Pradyun Saikia (2) departed with just two runs on the board. Regular wickets thereafter prevented the side from building any meaningful partnerships. Saurav Dihingia (31 off 36 balls), captain Sumit Ghadigaonkar (40 off 54 balls) and Denish Das (43 off 52 balls) showed resistance, but their efforts fell short.

Bengal’s bowling attack was led by Md Shami, who picked up 3 wickets for 55 runs, sealing a comfortable win for his side.

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