LUCKNOW, Oct. 22 -- Prashant Veer produced a devastating spell of left-arm spin, taking 7 for 23 as Uttar Pradesh crushed Andhra by an innings and 63 runs in their Under-23 Col CK Nayudu Trophy Elite Group B match, at the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium here on Wednesday. Leg spinner Vipraj Nigam provided excellent support with 2/30 as Andhra, forced to follow on, collapsed for 136 in their second innings. Andhra had earlier been dismissed for just 181 in their first innings, with Veer claiming five wickets and Nigam two. Asked to bat again after Uttar Pradesh posted 380, Andhra's resistance lasted only 32.5 overs. Veer was almost unplayable, returning figures of 11.5-4-23-7 at an economy rate of 1.94, while Nigam's 8-1-30-2 ensured there was no escape at the other end. Veer struck in every phase of the innings. He removed opener TV Sai Sravan caught by Nigam, then trapped Munnangi Abhinav, Garimella Teja, Varun Satwik, SDNV Prasad and Battina Yashwanth leg before wicket in a remarkable display of control and variation. Haneesh Reddy, who made a 33-ball 54 in the first innings, fell cheaply second time around for one, caught by Nigam off Veer. From 29 for 1, Andhra slipped to 65/4 and then 100 for 7. Only Yashwanth, with 63 off 104 balls, offered meaningful resistance, but once he became Veer's sixth victim at 129 for 8, the innings folded quickly. Siddu Karthik Reddy and Gavvala Mallikarjuna fell to Nigam as Andhra lost their last three wickets for seven runs. Veer's match haul of 12 wickets, including five in the first innings and seven in the second, underlined why he has been one of Uttar Pradesh's most promising all-rounders. The 20-year-old had earlier been named Player of the Tournament in the Men's U-23 State A Trophy 2025-26 after scoring 376 runs at 94.00 and taking 18 wickets in seven matches. While Veer took the headlines, Nigam's role was equally important. The leg spinner broke the backbone of Andhra's second innings with the wickets of Siddu Karthik Reddy and Mallikarjuna, and his catch to dismiss Haneesh Reddy gave Veer the first of his seven strikes. In the first innings too, Nigam had claimed two wickets, giving him four for the match. Nigam, who has already represented Uttar Pradesh in senior cricket and played a match-winning hand in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2024, showed his value as a genuine all-round option. He also contributed 14 runs in Uttar Pradesh's first-innings total, part of a lower-order effort that helped stretch the lead beyond Andhra's reach. In fact, Uttar Pradesh's victory was built on a massive first-innings total of 380 in 120.2 overs, anchored by Adarsh Singh's 184 off 261 balls and Kavya Teotia's 135-ball 57. Prashant Veer chipped in with a useful 51, while Aquib Khan's unbeaten 14 helped push the total past 380. Andhra's Gavvala Mallikarjuna was the pick of their bowlers with 6/80, but his efforts were overshadowed once Veer and Nigam got to work. With the pitch offering a turn, Uttar Pradesh's spinners made full use of the conditions, and the result was sealed well inside three days. Now, Uttar Pradesh will travel to Hyderabad to take on hosts from October 27 to 30....