BHUBANESWAR 06-Jul-2014 192
Odisha opening batsman Natraj Behera was on Sunday conferred with the 22nd Saheed Sporting-Maruti Estate (SSME) Cricketer of the Year Award for his outstanding performance in the 2013-14 Ranji Trophy Championship.
In a crowded function held at a city hotel, Maruti Estate India MD Jitendra Prasad Singh the handed over the award, which carried a cheque of Rs 25,000. Also present on the dais were former India swing bowler Debasis Mohanty, hockey Olympian Lazarus Barla and Sporting Club secretary Pankaj Patnaik.
Scores of eminent cricketers, including former India Test opener Shiv Sundar Das, Sanjay Raul, Sanjay Raul, Rashmi Ranjan Parida, Prasant Mohapatra, P Jayachandra, Yashpal Mohanty, Basant Mohanty and Govinda Poddar were presen in the function.
Real estate company Maruti Estate India and leading cricket Club Saheed Sporting also introduced the SSME Woman Cricketer of the Year Award on the occasion. The new award, carrying a cheque of Rs 10,000 was conferred on India opener Madhuri Meheta. In the absence of Madhuri, her father Pradeep Meheta received the award for the year 2013-14.
Natraj, who received the main award for scoring a total of 584 runs in six Ranji matches this season, dedicated it to his childhood coach and former Odisha captain Haramohan Praharaj, who passed away last year at Rourkela.
Dropped from the team due to disappointing performance in the first two matches, Natraj made a sensational comeback by hitting four centuries in a row, including two in the same match against Mumbai.
Instituted in the year 1992-93, SSME Cricketer of the Year Award was first bagged by Ranjib Biswal, the present chairman of the IPL Governing Council. Debasis Mohanty, the first Test cricketer of the state, claimed the award for a maximum of five times.
Among other past recepients, Pravanjan Mullick and Basant Mohanty won it three times each, while Shiv Sundar Das, Rashmi Ranjan Parida, Prasant Mohapatra, P Jayachandra, Sanjay Satpathy, BBCC Mohapatra, Deepak Mangaraj, Dhiraj Singh and Biplab Samantaray claimed it once each.
ROLL OF HONOURS:
SSME Cricketer of the Year: 1992-93: Ranjib Biswal, 1993-94: P Jayachandra, 1994-95: Rashmi Ranjan Parida, 1995-96: Prasant Mohapatra, 1996-97: Debasis Mohanty, 1997-98: Pravanjan Mullick, 1998-99: Shiv Sundar Das, 1999-2000: Sanjay Satpathy, 2000-01: Debasis Mohanty, 2001-02: Pravanjan Mullick, 2002-03: BBCC Mohapatra, 2003-04: Deepak Mangaraj, 2004-05: Debasis Mohanty, 2005-06: Pravanjan Mullick, 2006-07: Debasis Mohanty, 2007-08: Debasis Mohanty, 2008-09: Basant Mohanty, 2009-10: Dhiraj Singh, 2010-11: Basant Mohaty, 2011-12: Biplab Samantaray, 2012-13: Basant Mohanty, 2013-14: Natraj Behera.
SSME Woman Cricketer of the Year: 2013-14: Madhuri Meheta
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PHOTO: Natraj Behera (2nd from left) receives the SSME Cricketer of the Year Award in Bhubaneswar on July 6, 2014. Also seen are Debasis Mohanty, J P Singh, Pradeep Meheta, Lazarus Barla and Pankaj Patnaik.
