Patna, April 26, 2024: Patna clinched their fourth consecutive victory in the BCA Senior Men’s Cricket Tournament, defeating Vaishali by 63 runs, courtesy of half-centuries from Animesh Kumar (76 runs off 79 balls, including 14 fours) and Shashim Rathore (67 runs off 46 balls, including 14 fours), supported by commendable bowling performances by Vivek Kumar (3 wickets) and Rahul Rathore (3 wickets).
The match, held at the local Moinul Haq Stadium, saw Patna winning the toss and opting to bat first. Animesh Kumar and Shashim Rathore opened the innings for Patna, laying a solid foundation with an impressive partnership of 111 runs. The departure of Shashim Rathore marked Patna’s first setback, who contributed 67 runs off 46 balls. Babul Kumar, his replacement, managed only 5 runs before returning to the pavilion. Animesh then found support in Harshvardhan, forming a partnership of 47 runs. Patna faced their third setback at a total of 169 runs, with Animesh contributing 76 runs off 79 balls.
Subsequently, contributions from Harsh Vardhan (30 runs), Harsh Raj (16 runs), Akash Raj (44 runs), and Yashasvi Shukla (16 runs) propelled Patna to a total of 297 for nine wickets in their allotted 45 overs.
For Vaishali, Saroj Patel claimed 3 wickets for 64 runs, while Suraj Soni took 3 wickets for 57 runs.
In response, Vaishali had a shaky start, losing opener Shivraj Yadav without scoring and Ankit Kumar after just 1 run, both falling victim to Vivek Kumar’s bowling. Shivam Kumar and Ratnesh Kumar Singh steadied the innings, but Vaishali found themselves at 126 for the loss of six wickets. Shivam Kumar top-scored with 59 runs off 67 balls, including 4 fours and 1 six. Despite efforts from Ratnesh Kumar Singh (11 runs), Abhishek Anand (23 runs), and Pranav Kumar Praveen (20 runs), Vaishali were eventually all out for 234 runs in 39.2 overs. Prince Kumar remained unbeaten with 46 runs off 40 balls, featuring 6 fours, while Aditya Anand contributed 23 runs.
For Patna, Vivek Kumar claimed 3 wickets for 23 runs, supported by Akash Raj (1 wicket for 17 runs), Suraj Kashyap (1 wicket for 16 runs), Rahul Rathore (3 wickets for 54 runs), and Harshvardhan (1 wicket for 22 runs).
Brief scores:
Patna: All out for 297 runs in 45 overs – Animesh Kumar 76, Shashim Rathore 67, Harsh Vardhan 30, Harsh Raj 16, Akash Raj 44, Yashasvi Shukla 16, extras 14. Bowling: Saroj Patel 3/64, Anees Sharma 1/29, Aryan Kumar 1/47, Karthik Krishna 1/33, Suraj Soni 3/57.
Vaishali: All out for 234 runs in 39.2 overs – Shivam Kumar 59, Ratnesh Kumar Singh 11, Abhishek Anand 23, Pranav Praveen Kumar 20, Prince Kumar 46*, Aditya Anand 23, Saroj Patel 31, extras 17. Bowling: Vivek Kumar 3/23, Akash Raj 1/17, Suraj Kumar Kashyap 1/16, Rahul Rathore 3/54, Harshvardhan 1/22.
