Charan Kamal, one of the star performers

Jamshedpur, Jan. 23: Jharkhand created history by bagging the Vijay Merchant Trophy (under-17) with a 82-run win over Vidharbha in the Plate Group B final played at Sardar Patel Gujarat Stadium in Motera, near Ahmedabad today.

No cricket outfit from Jharkhand and Bihar has ever won a national-level tournament. Although the Bihar team has played the Ranji final, the junior teams (under-22, 19, 17 and 15) have never reached so far.

The victory today will go a long way in lifting the spirit of Jharkhand’s other cricket outfits, who have been cutting a sorry figure in the domestic tournaments organised by BCCI.

Amitabh Choudhary, the president of the Jharkhand State Cricket Association (JSCA), said the boys have done a great job with their hard work. He announced Rs 1.51 lakh to the team for winning the title. “JSCA will honour the team in Jamshedpur on January 27,” he added. Chasing a target of 237 for win, Vidharbha were all out for 154 runs on the third and concluding day today. City-based off-spinner Charan Kamal, a product of Tata Steel Cricket Training Centre (TSCTC), did the star act by scalping 4/38, damaging the prospects of the opponents.

Left-arm medium-pacer Jaskaran Singh, who trains with Kamal at TSCTC, and Dhanbad offie Kundan Singh complimented well by picking up two wickets each.

Vidharbha resumed at overnight 48 for two but the batsmen continued with their procession towards the pavilion in quick intervals. Barring A. Shanware (49) and A. Chore, none of the other batsmen showed any resilience to stay at the wicket.

Vidharbha was dismissed within 37 overs, testifying the dominance of Jharkhand bowlers on the final day.