This story is from November 12, 2019

Mushtaq Ali Trophy: Punjab paceman Sandeep Sharma blows Himachal Pradesh away

Just before the tournament started Punjab skipper Mandeep Singh reiterated that he has never seen Sandeep Sharma bowling this well. True to the skipper's words, Sandeep made Himachal Pradesh dance and duck on a pitch which has nothing to offer for the bowlers during their encounter in the ongoing Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
Mushtaq Ali Trophy: Punjab paceman Sandeep Sharma blows Himachal Pradesh away
Sandeep Sharma. (TOI Photo)
CHANDIGARH: Just before the tournament started Punjab skipper Mandeep Singh reiterated that he has never seen Sandeep Sharma bowling this well. True to the skipper's words, Sandeep made Himachal Pradesh dance and duck on a pitch which has nothing to offer for the bowlers during their encounter in the ongoing Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
Sandeep's (4/8) career-best performance helped Punjab trounce Himachal Pradesh by eight wickets at the Sector 16 Cricket Stadium, here on Tuesday.
The wiry lad from Patiala is in fiery form with eight wickets so far in four matches, which is the highest for his team. The advantage of playing Sandeep is his ability to take wickets not just in the powerplays but also at the death.
It was a strong all-round effort from Punjab, Sandeep, Harpreet Brar and Mayank Markande with the ball, Gurkeerat Singh Mann in the field with two excellent catches and then the 19-year-old rookie Prabhsimran Singh with the bat. It was Punjab's third straight win after their two-run loss to Hyderabad in their tournament opener.
Himachal Pradesh, who came into the match on the back of a resounding 84-run victory over Hyderabad on Monday, failed to replicate their performance. Electing to bat first, they could only manage 87 for 9 in the allotted 20 overs.
Sandeep struck on the fourth ball of Himachal's innings as he castled Abhimanyu Rana for a duck. In his next over, Sandeep trapped the visiting skipper Ankush Bains (5) in front. Thereafter, Ekant Sen (9 off 11b; 2x4) and Prashant Chopra (46 not out off 55b; 4x4) tried to ease the pressure by hitting a couple of boundaries. But Sen lofted one straight to Mandeep Singh at mid-wicket of Siddarth Kaul's bowling.
Thereafter, the spin troika of Punjab Harpreet, Karan Kaila and Mayank took over. The trio gave nothing away as Himachal batters struggled to find the boundaries. Forget about hitting the big shots, they were even unable to rotate strike. Apart from Chopra, no other Himachal batsman could cross the double figure mark.

For Punjab, Sandeep was the wrecker-in-chief. Harpreet (2/18) took two wickets, while Karan (1/19), Mayank (1/13) and Siddharth (1/25) took a wicket apiece.
Leg-spiner Mayank once again displayed why he is under the radar of Indian selectors. The Patiala leggie might have taken up just one wicket but showed tremendous amount of control and guile in his spell. The Himachal Pradesh batsmen were not able to pick him at all.
As the tournament has progressed, Punjab have also improved massively in the fielding department. They dropped five catches against Hyderabad but since then they hardly dropped anything. Gurkeerat Singh Mann took two excellent catches of Rishi Dhawan and Amit Kumar on Tuesday.
In reply, Punjab chased down the target in 9.2 overs with eight wickets in the shed.
If there were any concerns in the Punjab camp when Abhishek Sharma (16 off 9b; 4X3) fell early in the run chase they were quickly dashed by Prabhsimran Singh (57 not out off 32b; 4X7, 6X3). Prabhsimran was untroubled as he posted his second T20 half-century to guide his team to victory. His first boundary was a whipped six over fine leg, as if struck by a contortionist wielding a cricket bat. He kept the scoreboard ticking before opening his arms against Rishi Dhawan with two fours and a six. The best was yet to come as he hit a reverse sweep for a six off left-arm spinner Mayank Dagar.
Mann (14 not out off 7b; 2x6) completed the formalities with an audacious six over square leg and a slog over long leg to finish the game.
Punjab will next take on the table toppers Chhattisgarh on Thursday, while Himachal Pradesh will face Arunachal Pradesh.
Brief Scores:
Himachal Pradesh: 87 for 9 in 20 overs (Prashant Chopra 46 not out; Sandeep Sharma 4/8, Harpreet Brar 2/18, Mayank Markande 1/13)
Punjab: 90 for 2 in 9.2 overs (Prasbhsimran Singh 57 not out, Gurkeerat Singh Mann 14 not out; Jaswal 1/26, Jamwal 1/25)
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