Varsha’s four-wicket haul propels Ludhiana to win

A devastating bowling performance by Varsha Rani (4 for 9) and Parineeta Saroha (3 for 12) helped the Ludhiana outfit crush team Fazilka by 139 runs in the quarterfinal of the Punjab State Inter-District Women’s Limited Overs One-Day Cricket Tournament.

The match was played at the PCA ground in New Chandigarh on Tuesday.

Put into bat first, the Ludhiana side recovered from a shaky start to post a competitive 196 for 9 in a rain-reduced 42-over innings. The match was shortened from the standard 50 overs due to a wet outfield caused by overnight rain.

Ludhiana’s innings was anchored by Manya Sharma (56), Avneet Kaur Sandhu (35) and Varsha Rani (18). For Fazilka, Alisha Mehta took four wickets while Gunjan claimed three.

Chasing 197 runs for victory, the Fazilka outfit struggled to 57 all out in 25 overs, with only Alisha Mehta reaching double figures, scoring 37. Six Fazilka players were dismissed without scoring.

Varsha Rani and Parineeta Saroha shared the bulk of the bowling honours, taking seven wickets between them, while Moli Gosal and Samridhi Saini took one wicket each to complete the rout.