Cooch Behar Trophy U19: Beja’s century puts Odisha in command against Himachal

Balangir: Odisha took firm control of their Cooch Behar Trophy Under-19 multi-day match against Himachal Pradesh after a strong batting display on Day 2 at the Gandhi Stadium here on Wednesday, securing a healthy first-innings lead of 127 runs at stumps.

Resuming on their overnight score of 44 without loss, Odisha built steadily on the second day to reach 308 for 7 in 105 overs in their first innings. Sambit K Beja led the charge with a well-crafted century, scoring 100 off 197 balls, which included 10 fours. Beja showed patience and solid defence to anchor the innings.

He received excellent support from Aditya Anand, who played an attacking knock of 73 runs off 124 deliveries, hitting seven fours and three sixes. The duo stitched together a crucial partnership that helped Odisha gain control after Himachal Pradesh had earlier bowled with discipline.

For Himachal Pradesh, Siddhak Dhillon and Akshay P Vashisht were the most effective bowlers. Dhillon picked up two wickets for 81 runs from 33 overs, while Vashisht returned figures of two for 43 from 17 overs.

Earlier, on Day 1, Himachal Pradesh were bowled out for 181 in 72.3 overs after opting to bat first. Aditya S Kataria top-scored with 57 off 84 balls, while Arpit Singh added 41 from 99 deliveries. Odisha’s Priyanshu Mohanty delivered an outstanding bowling performance, claiming seven wickets for 60 runs in 27.3 overs to dismantle the Himachal batting lineup. Sambit K Beja also chipped in with a wicket, conceding just 18 runs from eight overs.

At the close of Day 1, Odisha had reached 44 without no loss, with Sambit K Beja unbeaten on 25 and Abhiroop Das on 18.