In a day of the underdogs, Odisha Jaguars beat Odisha Cheetas by 48 runs, while Odisha Pumas upset table toppers Odisha Panthers by 29 runs in the 17th and 18th matches espectively in the MGM Odisha T-20 Cricket League at Barabati Stadium in Cuttack today.

Shamsul A Khan was the star of the Jaguars win, hitting a 35-ball 62, which included 10 boundaries and two sixes. Another notable performer for the Jaguars was Nirbishankar Barik, who bagged four wickets for 17 runs. Shamsul Khan was adjudged the Man of the Match. This was the first win for the Jaguars and third defeat for the Cheetas.

Later in the day, Odisha Pumas prevailed over Odisha Panthers by 30 runs to move up to the second position in the points table. This was the fourth win in six matches for the Pumas, who now have 16 points in their kitty.

Sandeep Pattnaik played instrumental role in the Pumas win, scoring a 47-ball 51. He pocketed the Man of the Match prize of Rs 5,000. Despite suffering first defeat in six matches, Panthers retained place at the top of the league table with 20 points.

BRIEF SCORES (4 January, 2021):

Match 17: Odisha Jaguars 169/4 in 20 overs (Shamsul A Khan 62, Girija Rout 37, Abhijit Barik 33*; Manoj Barik 2/36) beat Odisha Cheetas 121/9 in 20 overs (Anurag Sarangi 31, Suman Mohapatra 20; Nirbishankar Barik 4/17, Manoj Kashyap 2/16) by 48 runs. MoM: Shamsul A Khan.

Match 18: Odisha Pumas 137/9 in 20 overs (Sandeep Pattnaik 51, Tukuna Sahu 40; Alok Chandra Sahoo 3/13, Pradeep Pradhan 2/24, Abhishek Yadav 2/31) beat Odisha Panthers 108/10 in 19.3 overs (Abhishek Yadav 32, Ranjit Paikaray 20; Dhiraj Kumar Singh 2/11, Prayash Singh 2/29) by 30 runs. MoM: Sandeep Pattnaik.
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PHOTO: Jaguars batsman Shamsul A Khan receives the Man of the Match prize from OCA member Gyanchand Das in Cuttack on 4 January, 2021.