Wriddhiman Saha returns to form with a 62-ball 129 in Syed Mushtaq Ali T20s

Wriddhiman plundered the hapless Arunachal bowlers into submission en route his highest score in T20 cricket (129), hitting 16 boundaries and four sixes, helping Bengal post a mammoth 234 for 6.

Wriddhiman Saha sent a reminder to the selectors by scoring a blistering 62-ball 129 in Bengal’s 107-run win over Arunachal Pradesh in a Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 tournament group D match at Cuttack on Wednesday.

Playing his first competitive tournament after undergoing a shoulder surgery which pushed him away from cricket for nine months, Saha smashed his highest T20 score, hitting hapless Arunachal bowlers to all parts of the ground. Saha hit 16 boundaries and four sixes, helping Bengal post a mammoth 234 for 6.

Arunachal never had the ammunition to chase down the target and reached 127 for 4 in their stipulated 20 overs.

The match was all about Wriddhiman, who opened the innings after a string of low scores -- 2, 3, 6 and 11 in the previous four games.
This was his second century in the shortest format after 114 for Kings XI Punjab in the in the IPL 2014 final in Bengaluru, which Kolkata Knight Riders won.

"The ploy of pushing Wriddhi up the order worked. He needs to get some time at the crease and look what a gem he delivered. Fantastic innings. The late surge also helped," Bengal skipper Manoj Tiwary hailed.

Bengal also promoted Ritwik Chowdhury to open dropping in-form Shreevats Goswami at No 5 as the opening duo put on 37 runs in 19 balls.
Skipper Manoj Tiwary continued his poor form and departed for two as Saha forged a partnership with young vice-captain Abhimanyu Easwaran (31), the duo adding 96 quick runs in just 51 balls.

Lower down the order Vivek Singh produced a quickfire cameo of 18-ball 49 but was unlucky to miss out on a half-century to give Bengal a winning total.

Asked about his poor form, Tiwary said: "It's just a matter of time. I am hitting the ball well in nets. O know I will score big soon. The next too matches are crucial for us and we are looking to leave everything on the field. The team is motivated to do well," he added.

Brief Scores: Bengal 234/6; 20 overs (Wriddhiman Saha 129, Vivek Singh 49; Akhilesh Sahani 3/36) beat Arunachal Pradesh 127/4; 20 overs (Kshitiz Sharma 54 not out) by 107 runs.