Bengal registered their third win on the trot in the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy, whipping Sikkim by 84 runs at the Ekana Stadium B in Lucknow on Tuesday.
With this victory, Bengal moved up to the top of Group E with 14 points with a bet net run rate than Chhattisgarh, who too are on 14.
Opting to bat first, Bengal rode on contributions from Sudip Gharami (56), Shahbaz Ahmed (43) and wicketkeeper-batter Agniv Pan (34 not out off 12 balls) to post 179 for six. The target was always going to be a difficult one for Sikkim, and Bengal bowlers made it even tougher for them.
Spinner Pradipta Pramanik struck twice and so did 21-year-old Karan Lal, who conceded only five runs off his two overs with his off-break bowling. Bengal’s quicks were also spot-on with their lengths.
Brief scores: Bengal 179/6 in 20 overs (S. Gharami 56, S. Ahmed 43; S. Singh 2/29). Sikkim 95/8 in 20 ovs (P. Pramanik 2/11, K. Lal 2/5). Bengal won by 84 runs.
