Left-arm spinners bowling with a diagonal run-up are a rare sight nowadays. Nishant Sindhu not only ran in that way, he bowled Haryana to a 100-run win over Bengal in their opening fixture of the Buchi Babu Invitational Tournament at the AM Jain College in Chennai on Wednesday.
Sindhu claimed six for 39 and helped Haryana defend a target of 265 even as Sumanta Gupta threatened to keep Bengal in the chase with his 55-run knock.
The 21-year-old struck twice in the 12th over to trigger Bengal’s collapse, removing Saurabh Kumar, who was caught sweeping in the deep, and Sudip Gharami, who was shaping up well during his brisk 31 off 26 balls laced with commanding pulls and drives. Sindhu’s return catch to dismiss Gharami was a standout moment.
After captain Anustup Mazumdar fell on the stroke of Tea, trapped in front off Amit Rana, Sumanta added 63 runs with Vishal Bhati to revive Bengal’s hopes. However, Sindhu returned to break the stand, having Vishal (32 off 37 balls) caught at point, before quickly accounting for Rahul Prasad and Suraj Sindhu Jaiswal to complete his five-wicket haul. From there, it was only a matter of time before Bengal’s chase ended and Haryana sealed six points.
Earlier, spin had also kept Bengal in contention when Haryana resumed its second innings with a 34-run lead.
Ankit Kumar’s early aggression gave Haryana momentum, but once Vishal entered the attack, the innings changed course. The left-arm spinner finished with six for 66, including key wickets of Ankit, Himanshu Rana, Yashvardhan Dalal, and Parth Vats.
Despite Dalal’s fluent 65 and Vats’ steady 43, Haryana was bowled out for 230, but a lead of 264 proved sufficient to start its red-ball campaign on a winning note.
Published on Aug 20, 2025
