Bengal beat Vidarbha by 17 runs in a high-scoring encounter to enter the semifinals of the Vijay Hazare limited-over tournament at the Khanderi-SCA stadium here on Thursday.
In the other quarterfinal at the Race Course Stadium, Odisha scored a thrilling one-run win over Goa. The third and fourth quarterfinals — Karnataka-Mumbai and Railways-Punjab — will be played at Baroda on Friday.
Put in, Bengal rattled up 318 with Manoj Tiwary making an electrifying 101-ball 130 (4x4, 9x6). Opener Shreevats Goswami scored 84 with nine hits to the fence.
In reply, opener Faiz Fazal (105, 111b, 9x4, 2x6) and S. Badrinath (100, 94b, 13x4) raised 113 for the third wicket to keep Vidarbha in the hunt.
However, Fazal’s dismissal in the 37th over allowed Bengal back into the contest. Seamer Veerpratap Singh took six wickets as Vidarbha fell short.
Agonisingly shortGoa made a brave effort while chasing Odisha’s 289. Goa, the second qualifier from South Zone, was clearly unlucky as Sagun Kamat (92 not out, 87b, 5x4, 5x6) had to leave the field with cramps after adding 169 for the second wicket with opener Amogh Desai (110, 139b, 12x4, 1x6). Odisha capitalised on this slice of luck, taking the last eight Goa wickets for 70 runs.
The scores:
Bengal 318 for five in 50 overs (Shreevats Goswami 84, Manoj Tiwary 130, Suvojit Banerjee 30 n.o.) bt Vidarbha 301 for eight in 50 overs (Faiz Fazal 105, S. Badrinath 100, Veerpratap Singh six for 51).
Odisha 289 in 49.4 overs (Paresh Patel 39, Anurag Sarangi 112, Biplab Samantaray 100, Saurabh Bandekar five for 37) bt Goa 288 for nine in 50 overs (Amogh Desai 110, Sagun Kamat 92 n.o., Shadab Jakati 26 n.o.).
