Trivandrum, Feb 05: Riding on a superb bowling display by almost all the bowlers led by Speedster Mariya Noorain and a magnificent batting show by the opening duo of Bawandeep Kaur and Sheena Saraf and all-round display of skipper Rudrakshi Chib, the J&K eves began their campaign in style, trouncing formidable Jharkhand by four wickets in the ongoing Women’s U-23 One Day Trophy at Sports Hub International Stadium Trivandrum Wednesday.
Chasing a decent total of 152 runs, J&K rode on an opening partnership of 87 runs between Bawandeep Kaur and Sheena Saraf and surpassed the required target in 47.2 overs by losing 5 wickets, thus winning the match by 5 wickets. Bawandeep showed sublimity and elegance to score 51 off 81 balls, studded with 9 delectable boundaries, while Sheena displayed solidity and composure to score 25 runs off 71 balls with 3 crispy boundaries.
After an opening partnership of 87 runs, J&K lost 3 quick wickets in the form of Sheena, Chitra Singh and Bawandeep to make it 89/3. However, Rudrakshi took the team out of troubling waters and guided her side to 4-wicket victory in 43.5 overs. She remained unbeaten on 43 runs off 40 balls including 7 fours, while Ananaya Sharma was unbeaten on 9 with 2 boundaries. For Jharkhand, Anandita Kishor took 3 wickets, while Neha Kumari and Shefa Hassan claimed one wicket each. Earlier, put into bat, Jharkhand after struggling at 32/5 in 13.3 overs, managed to score 152 runs in 44.4 overs. Shikha top scored with 51 runs off 75 balls studded with 6 boundaries while Chandmuni Purti and Anandita Kishor contributed 32 and 20 runs to the total respectively. The duo of Shikha and Chandmuni salvaged the sinking ship and made a partnership of 71 runs between them, thus giving respectability to the team’s total. For J&K, Mariya Noorain was the most successful bowler, taking 2 wickets by conceding 22 runs in her 8 overs, while skipper Rudrakshi Chib bagged 2 wickets by giving away 29 runs in her 7.4 overs. Arveen Riyas, Ananaya Sharma, Chitra Singh Jamwal and Tahseena Nisar claimed one wicket each. Mariya was the pick of the bowlers, who plotted the early collapse of the rival team.
