Vijay Hazare Trophy: Swastik Samal joins Sanju Samson with historic double ton, but Saurashtra trump Odisha

Bengaluru: Swastik Samal recorded his name alongside Sanju Samson in Vijay Hazare Trophy history with a magnificent double century, but his record-breaking effort went in vain as Saurashtra chased down a daunting target to beat Odisha by five wickets at the Alur Cricket Stadium on Wednesday.

Samal smashed a sublime 212, becoming only the ninth batter in the history of the Vijay Hazare Trophy to score a double hundred. His knock is now the joint fourth-highest individual score in the tournament, equalling Sanju Samson’s unbeaten 212 from 2019. The innings also rewrote Odisha’s List A record books, surpassing the previous highest score of 145 that had stood since 2005.

Batting first after Saurashtra opted to field, Odisha piled up a massive 345 for six in their 50 overs, riding on Samal’s commanding 169-ball knock, which was studded with 21 fours and eight sixes. He found solid support from Biplab Samantray, who struck a brisk century, scoring 100 off 91 balls. For Saurashtra, Ankur Panwar (3/68) and Chirag Jani (2/52) were the main wicket-takers.

Despite the steep target, Saurashtra produced a composed chase. Gajjar Sammar anchored the innings with an unbeaten 132 off 118 balls, keeping the scoreboard ticking with 12 fours and three sixes. Chirag Jani played a crucial supporting role, hammering 86 from just 55 deliveries to swing the momentum firmly in Saurashtra’s favour.

Odisha’s bowlers tried to fight back, with Debabrata Pradhan picking up three wickets, but the run rate never slipped out of Saurashtra’s control. The chase was completed in 48.5 overs as Saurashtra finished on 347 for five.