He was wicketless in the previous two fixtures in the competition but bounced back in style.
Vaibhav Arora took a magnificent five-wicket haul against Maharashtra in Himachal Pradesh’s latest Vijay Hazare Trophy encounter. He was wicketless in the previous two fixtures in the competition but bounced back in style.
He dismissed Azim Kazi (28), Nikhil Naik (15), Satyajeet Bachhav (8), Mukesh Choudhary (0), and Pradeep Dadhe (0) during his spell and derailed Maharashtra’s innings completely. He ended with the figures read: 10-1-43-5, taking the most wickets in the game.
This was also his best List A spell, registering his maiden five-wicket haul in the 50-over format in the 19th attempt. While the opponent scored 360 runs and two batters scored centuries, Vaibhav conceded runs at a frugal economy rate of 4.30, the lowest among all bowlers in the innings.
His spell was vital in restricting Maharashtra to 360, for they looked set to post a massive total when two set batters were looking good at the crease. Vaibhav usually specialises in swinging the new ball and getting wickets upfront, but he showed his death-over skillsets this time, with all his wickets coming in the final five overs of the innings.
After winning the toss, Himachal Pradesh opted to field first, but the decision didn’t turn out to be fruitful. While they got two early wickets, including Ruturaj Gaikwad, Siddhesh Veer (155) and Ankit Bawne (123) weaved a massive 253-run stand for the third wicket and put Maharashtra on track to post a big total.
However, Himachal Pradesh made a comeback in the end overs, restricting the opponent to 360 when they could have easily scored more. Prashant Chopra (87) and Mani Sharma (54) posted a 101-run partnership for the second wicket during the chase.
But once Mani Sharma got out, other batters couldn’t apply themselves and lost their wickets regularly. Eventually, Himachal Pradesh bundled on 276, giving Maharashtra a convincing 84-run win.
He also contributed a bit with the bat, scoring 28 runs in 24 balls, including three boundaries and a maximum, at No.9. Vaibhav Arora’s all-round show went in vain, but he showed his superior capabilities.
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