Sibsankar Roy struck a brilliant 83 off just 53 balls as Bengal slipped to a 26-run defeat against Assam in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Twenty20 cricket tournament at the Barabati stadium here on Monday. Assam's third consecutive win propelled it to the No. 2 position in Group D.
Set 163 to win, Bengal was dealt an early blow when opener Vivek Singh was caught behind off Mukhtar Hussain. Kanishk Seth was promoted up the order as a pinch hitter but the move backfired after the left-arm pacer was caught short of his crease by keeper Wasiqur Rahman. And when Abhimanyu Easwaran's top-edge was snaffled up at point three overs later, Bengal was left wobbling at 34/3 inside first six overs.
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In-form batsman Goswami struggled to time the ball on a two-paced pitch but hung on for a 34-run fifth-wicket stand with Wriddhiman Saha but the latter's dismissal off Hussain, compounded Bengal's problems. With the pressure mounting and the asking rate climbing, Goswami perished for 43 off Riyan Parag.
Roy stars with the bat
Earlier, Ashoke Dinda removed openers Sarupam Purkayastha and Pallav Das in quick succession after Bengal won the toss and put Assam in to bat. Dinda bowled an incisive first spell conceding only five in two overs. Under-19 World Cup winner Ishan Porel further limited the batsmen's scoring opportunities, bowling three overs at a stretch that went for just 14 runs.
Sibsankar Roy tried to inject life into Assam's otherwise sedate scoring up front, collecting four boundaries off Seth; two of those glorious cover-drives.
He brought up his fifty off 36 balls, adding 137 for the third wicket with Parag, who hammered Prayas Ray Barman for a six and a four in one over.
The duo upped the ante in the latter half of the innings to paper over Bengal seamers' early effort. Roy was eventually run out, but Parag's quickfire half-century ensured Assam reached an eventually winning total. Dinda finished with four for 17.
Karnataka thrashes hapless Mizoram
In another match, Karnataka rolled over minnow Mizoram by 137 runs at the DRIEMS ground to consolidate its position at the top of Group D. Rohan Kadam and Karun Nair toyed with the opposition attack, plundering 11 boundaries and eight sixes between them as the first-timer from North East wilted under the weight of their willow.
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The duo added an enterprising 128 runs for the second wicket, with Karnataka breaching the 100-run mark in just 10.3 overs. Kadam and Nair brought up their half-centuries off 39 and 26 balls respectively.
Twenty fours and 11 sixes in total were hit by the Karnataka batsmen as leg-spinner Sinan Khadir ended up leaking 54 in four overs -- the most expensive of the seven bowlers used.
Mizoram openers Taruwar Kohli and Akhil Rajput put on an opening stand of 63 but their dismissals sealed the team's fate. For Karnataka, Shreyas Gopal picked up four wickets giving away eight runs.
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