Vaibhav Arora took a magnificent five-wicket haul against Maharashtra in Himachal Pradesh’s final Vijay Hazare Trophy match. They were without ground in the previous two matches of the competition, but recovered in style.

He dismissed Azim Kazi (28), Nikhil Naik (15), Satyajeet Bachhav (8), Mukesh Choudhary (0) and Pradeep Dadhe (0) during his spell and completely derailed Maharashtra’s innings. He finished with the figures read: 10-1-43-5, taking the most wickets in the game.

This was also his best List A spell, registering his first five-wicket haul in the 50-over format in the 19th attempt. While the opponent scored 360 runs and two batsmen scored centuries, Vaibhav conceded runs at a rate of frugal economy of 4.30, the lowest among all bowlers in the innings.

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His spell was vital in restricting Maharashtra to 360 as they looked set to post a massive total when two set batsmen looked good at the crease. Vaibhav usually specializes in swinging the new ball and getting early wickets, but this time he showed off his killing skills, with all his wickets coming in the last five innings of the innings.

Maharashtra registers another victory against Himachal Pradesh

After winning the toss, Himachal Pradesh opted to play first, but the decision did not prove fruitful. While they got two early wickets including Ruturaj Gaikwad, Siddhesh Veer (155) and Ankit Bawne (123) weaved a huge 253-run stand for the third wicket and put Maharashtra on track to post a big total.

However, Himachal Pradesh bounced back in the final overs, restricting the opponent to 360 when they could have easily scored more. Prashant Chopra (87) and Mani Sharma (54) registered a 101-run partnership for the second wicket during the chase.

But once Mani Sharma got out, other batsmen couldn’t apply and lost their wickets regularly. Finally, Himachal Pradesh scored 276, giving Maharashtra a convincing 84-run victory.

He also contributed a little with the bat, scoring 28 runs in 24 balls, including three boundaries and a maximum, at number 9. Vaibhav Arora’s all-round show was in vain, but it showed his superior capabilities.

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