New Delhi: Delhi captain Gautam Gambhir served a timely reminder to the selectors with a potentially match-winning knock of 153 while Virender Sehwag failed yet again as Delhi closed in on a comprehensive outright win against Haryana in a Ranji Trophy group League encounter at Roshnara club.
Starting the day at 35 for no loss, Delhi declared at 312 for seven leaving Haryana with a stiff target of 376.
At stumps, visitors were reeling at 63 for five with debutant left-arm spinner Varun Sood picking up three wickets for three runs.
The day belonged to Gambhir who faced 215 balls hitting 25 fours. He batted for nearly five hours and stepped the run rate after reaching his 100 to set up Delhi for their first six points in the tournament.
With the Test squad for South Africa set to be announced in a few weeks' time, Gambhir has certainly made a case for himself in the reserve opener's slot.
Sehwag didn't have any such luck as he played another rash shot trying to slash a delivery from medium pacer Ashish Hooda away from his body only to offer a simple catch to Sunny Singh at first slip.
Sehwag made six this time and this took his total Ranji score to 69 from six innings this season.
Gambhir, on the other hand, was patient enough. He had a lot of edges that flew past slip and gully region but still managed to hit some good cover drives, pull shots and lofted shots over extra cover.
He reached his century with a slash over point but after reaching his ton was more fluent.
He got some good support from Mithun Manhas, who smashed his way to 36 off 37 balls before retiring hurt due to a hamstring pull.
Rajat Bhatia also played a cameo scoring 56 off 51 balls adding 124 runs in just over 20 overs which helped Delhi declare their innings with at least two hours to go at the Haryana batsmen.
Nitin Saini (29) and Abhimanyu Khod (29) did all the hard work for 16 overs before Saini mistimed a pull shot with Pawan Suyal taking a good catch running in from deep fine leg.
Then it was debutant Sood's turn. He first bowled one that breached Sunny Singh's defence and then trapped Hooda and Rahul Dalal plumb in-front to peg Delhi back.
In between Ishant got the wicket of Khod who was taken by Punit Bisht behind the stumps.
Brief Scores: Delhi 201 & 312/7 dec (Gautam Gambhir 153, Rajat Bhatia 56 no, Virender Sehwag 6)
Haryana 138 & (target 376) 63/5 (Varun Sood 3/3).
Services take upper hand over MP
Services take upper hand over MP
New Delhi: Yashpal Singh scored a fine century as Services posted 391 on the third and penultimate day to take a 152-run first innings lead before reducing Madhya Pradesh to 127 for three in their Ranji Trophy Group B league encounter here today.
Madhya Pradesh still trail by 25 runs with seven wickets remaining. Going into tomorrow's game, Services will look to bundle out the visitors as early as possible and then try to overhaul the required target to score an outright win.
Resuming on 256 for three, overnight batsman Yashpal, starting on 81, went on to complete his century but his partner Rajat Paliwal (99) could add just eight more runs to his last night's total to fall only a run short of his ton.
The overnight duo raised a solid 164-run stand for the fourth wicket.
Yashpal then joined hands with Vishnu Tiwari (32) to put on a 52 runs for the sixth wicket to give Services an edge.
Yashpal's 142 came off 270 balls with 13 hit to the fence and three sixes.
For MP, Jalaj Saxena was the pick of the bowlers with figures of four for 83.
Already 152 runs behind, MP got off to a poor start in their second innings, losing Jalaj Saxena (4) early.
The other opener in Satyam Choudhary (15) also fell cheaply to leave the visitors reeling at 30 for two.
But Naman Ojha and Mohnish Mishra (31) came to the team's rescue, sharing a crucial 71-run stand for the third wicket.
At stumps, Naman was unbeaten on 61 and giving him company at the other end was Devendra Bundela on five.
Brief scores:
Services 1st innings: 391 all out (Yashpal Singh 142, Rajat Paliwal 99; Jalaj Saxena 4/83).
MP: 239 & 127 for three (Naman Ojha batting 61, Mohnish Mishra 31; T Koteswar Rao 2/18).
Punjab take control over Gujarat
Punjab take control over Gujarat
Mohali: Taruwar Kohli (50) and Uday Kaul (52 not out) notched up half centuries as Punjab put themselves in the drivers' seat by posting 309 all out in their second innings on the third and penultimate day of their Ranji Trophy Group A match against Gujarat here today.
Resuming at 127 for two, Punjab added another 182 runs today with Kohli and wicketkeeper Kaul playing a major role. Mandeep Singh (46) was the other batsman who chipped in with a substantial score at the PCA Stadium.
Kohli was solid in his 146-ball innings which was studded with five fours and a six while Kaul played an attacking innings by hitting 10 boundaries in his 93-ball knock.
For Gujarat, Jasprit Bumrah and Mehul Patel grabbed three wickets apiece while Rakesh Dhruv took two wickets.
Set with a victory target of 355, Gujarat were reduced to 33 for three from 24.5 overs at the draw of stumps. The visitors need another 322 runs with seven second innings wickets in hand.
Opener Samit Gohel was batting on 20 while Rujul Bhatt was giving him company on four. The other opener Smit Patel, Manpreet Juneja and Bhargav Merai were out cheaply for 0, 3 and 6 respectively.
Out of the three Gujarat wickets that fell today, Sandeep Sharma (Jr) grabbed two while Siddarth Kaul took one.
Brief Scores:
Punjab: 172 & 309 all out in 111.5 overs (Taruwar Kohli 50, Uday Kaul 52 not out; Jasprit Bumrah 3/63, Mehul Patel 3/79).
Gujarat: 127 & 33 for 3 in 24.5 overs (Samit Gohel batting 20; Sandeep Sharma (Jr) 2/7).
Assam on top against Tripura
Assam on top against Tripura
Tripura: Assam seemed on course to record a big win over Tripura as they amassed a mammoth 521 for five before declaring their first innings on the third and penultimate day of their Ranji Trophy Group C match here today.
After Dheeraj Jadhav's 194 and Tarjinder Singh 99 on the second day, Niraj Patel (66) and Gokul Sharma (70 not out) helped Assam pile up the huge total.
In response, Tripura were 159 for three after Samrat Singha (57 batting) and K B Pawan (51) struck important half centuries.
For Assam, Arup Das picked up two wickets in his 18 overs.
Brief Scores:
Assam: 521/5 declared.
Tripura: 136 and 159/3 in 69 overs (Samrat Singha (57 batting, K B Pawan 51, Arup Das 2/57).
Gadekar, Kamat hit fifties for Goa but Maharashtra in control
Gadekar, Kamat hit fifties for Goa but Maharashtra in control
Pune: Harshad Gadekar and Sagun Kamat scored a half-century each to take Goa to 297 for five in their first innings in reply to Maharashtra's mammoth 635 at the end of third and penultimate day's play in a a Group C match of the Ranji Trophy, here today.
While Gadekar was unbeaten on 86 off 294 balls with the help of 13 boundaries, Kamat made a fine 83 that came off 179 balls and was studded with eight hits to the fence and three sixes.
At stumps, wicket-keeper Keenan Vaz was giving Gadekar company at the crease with Goa still trailing Maharashtra by 338 runs with five wickets in hand.
Resuming at the overnight score of 73 for one, Goa lost Swapnil Asnodkar at the team score of 101.
Then Gadekar and Kamat joined hands and played cautiously to share 151 runs for the third-wicket partnership.
But Maharashtra bowlers picked up three wickets, including that of Kamat, towards the fag end of the day to put Goa in a spot of bother.
As the match stands now, Maharashtra are favourites to secure the vital first innings lead as Goa needs something sort of a miracle to overhaul the hosts' total.
Pace duo of Shrikant Mundhe (2/68) and Domnic Joseph (2/74) shared four wickets between them for Maharashtra.
Brief Scores:
Maharashtra 1st innings: 635 all out in 153.4 overs
Goa 1st innings: 297 for five in 116 overs (Harshad Gadekar 86 not out, Sagun Kamat 83; Shrikant Mundhe 2/68).
Railways take upperhand against Rajasthan
Railways take upperhand against Rajasthan
Jaipur: Railways shot out Rajasthan for 178 in their first innings but themselves collapsed to 150 even though it was enough to set a challenging target of 256 for the hosts on the third and penultimate day of their Ranji Trophy Group B match here today.
On a dramatic day, 14 wickets fell as Rajasthan failed to hold on for too long from the overnight 142 for six. The Railways response was not too impressive either but it was just enough to post a challenging target.
In reply, Rajasthan were five for no loss at stumps with Siddharth Saraf (4) and Vineet Saxena (0) at the crease for the home side.
Earlier this morning, Anureet Singh Singh, Krishankant Upadhyay and Ranjitkumar Mali picked up three wickets apiece to send Rajasthan packing for 178.
However, Railways themselves endured a spectacular batting collapse to be skittled out for 150. Only Nitin Bhille managed to put up a semblance of fight with his 170-ball 50.
Seven of Railways batsmen went back to the pavillion without touching the double-digit mark. For Rajasthan, Deepak Chahar and Aniket Choudhary scalped three wickets apiece to wreck the Railways' batting in 62.5 overs.
Brief Scores:
Railways: 283 and 150
Rajasthan: 178 and 5 for no loss in three overs.
Mohanty 6-wkt haul takes Odisha in command over Jharkhand
Mohanty 6-wkt haul takes Odisha in command over Jharkhand
Cuttack: Pacer Basant Mohanty wrecked havoc with a six-wicket haul to put Odisha in command on the third and penultimate day of their Group A Ranji Trophy match against Jharkhand here today.
Mohanty grabbed all the six Jharkhand wickets that fell today as the visiting side ended the day at 149 for six at the DRIEMS Ground at Tangi here.
Saurabh Tiwary (57) and Pappu Singh (56 batting) were the only two Jharkhand batsmen who put up some resistance.
Jharkhand now lead by 63 runs with four second innings wickets in hand.
Tomorrow's first session may determine the outcome of the match. If Odisha are able to bundle out Jharkhand quickly, they may be able to force a win. Otherwise, the match may end in a draw as with a day remaining and just 63 runs ahead, Jharkhand are unlikely to force a win.
After conceding a 86-run first innings lead to Odisha, the visiting side made a disastrous start to their second essay with their top three batsmen perishing at the team score of 15.
Jharkhand continued their awful batting by being reduced to 37 for five before Tiwary and Singh shared 99 runs for the sixth wicket to save the visiting side from disaster.
Earlier, Odisha were all out for 307 in 118.4 overs after resuming the day at 245 for five.
Biplab Samantray could add just three runs to his overnight 64 as Odisha score 62 more runs today in 19.4 overs.
Brief Scores:
Jharkhand 221 & 149 for 6 in 59 overs (Saurabh Tiwary 57, Pappu Singh 56; Basant Mohanty 6/63).
Odisha: 307 all out in 118.4 overs (Biplab Samantray 67; Ajay Yadav 5/61).
Vidarbha-Karnataka tie heads for a draw
Vidarbha-Karnataka tie heads for a draw
Nagpur: With the match heading towards a tame draw, both Vidarbha and Karnataka look to fight it out to take the first innings lead, as the third and penultimate day today ended with the two teams sharing honours in their Group A Ranji Trophy match here.
In reply to Vidarbha's 542, Karnataka reached 252 for two in their first innings at the close of play. The visitors now trail the hosts by 290 runs with eight wickets in hand here at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium, Jamtha.
Starting the day on 457 for six, Vidarbha lost overnight batsman -- skipper Shalabh Shrivastava -- early with the addition of just six runs to his last night's score of 187.
Shrivastava blasted 22 boundaries during his 193-run knock off 488 balls, besides adding 103 runs for the seventh wicket with the other overnight batsman Sumit Ruikar (67).
Important contributions from tailenders Amol Jungade (15) and Umesh Yadav (34) ensured that the hosts cross the 550-run mark.
HS Sharath of Karnataka was the pick of the bowlers with four for 104.
Karnataka got off to a great start in reply to Vidarbha's massive total, with Robin Uthappa (86) and Mayank Agarwal (71) putting on 124 runs for the opening wicket.
At stumps, Lokesh Rahul was unbeaten on 59 and giving him company at the other end was Manish Pandey on 21. The duo has already added an unbeaten 49 runs for the third wicket.
Brief scores:
Vidarbha 1st innings: 542 all out (Shalabh Shrivastava 193, Faiz Fazal 147, Sumit Ruikar 67; HS Sharath 4/104).
Karnataka 1st innings: 252 for two (Robin Uthappa 86, Mayank Agarwal 71; Akshay Wakhare 1/36).
Saha scores another half-century as Bengal take 272-run lead
Saha scores another half-century as Bengal take 272-run lead
Kolkata: Wriddhiman Saha scored his third half-century in as many matches as Bengal crawled to 194 for eight in their second innings which took their overall lead to 272 against Saurashtra in a Ranji Trophy group league encounter at the Eden Gardens here today.
Saha (52) and Anushtup Majumdar (69) added 92 crucial runs for the fifth wicket to provide Bengal with a decent lead by the end of the day.
With a day's play left, Bengal would hope that their last two wickets atleast consume enough time on the final day in order to snuff out any hopes that Saurashtra will harbour of making a match of it. It will also depend on how well Cheteshwar Pujara bats on the final day and the kind of support he gets.
Starting the day with an overall lead of 83, Bengal were reduced to 59 for four by the 30th over as Saurashtra bowlers Sandeep Maniyar and Abhishek Bhatt were making the ball talk.
Opener Arindam Das toiled to reach 27 off 82 balls but makeshift opener Sourashis Lahiri (12), young Sandipan Das (1) and regular opener Rohan Banerjee (4) coming in at No 4, were dismissed cheaply.
Then it was Saha and Majumdar, who came in and batted for more than 31 overs. The time they consumed also became important as it frustrated the Saurashtra bowlers no end.
Saha faced 141 balls hitting six boundaries while Majumdar had seven hits to the fence in 156-ball knock.
Saha was finally removed when he flashed one from medium pacer Chirag Jani to wicketkeeper Sheldon Jackson. Skipper Laxmi Ratan Shukla (5) also edged one to Jackson behind the stumps.
Bengal were reduced to 189 for eight when Bhatt removed Subhomoy Das and Majumdar to grab his third and fourth wickets respectively.
The tail-enders Ashoke Dinda (0 batting) and Sourav Sarkar (13 batting) then played out the remaining deliveries.
Brief Scores: Bengal 303 & 194/8 (Wriddhiman Saha 52, Anushtup Majumdar 69, Abhishek Bhatt 4/47, Chirag Jani 3/54).
Saurashtra 225. Bengal lead by 272 runs.
Hyderabad post 319/7 in second innings
Hyderabad post 319/7 in second innings
Dharamsala: Syed Quadri and D Ravi Teja scored half-century each to help Hyderabad post 319 for seven in their second innings at the end of the third and penultimate day of their Group C Ranji Trophy tie against Himachal Pradesh here today.
Himachal Pradesh had taken the first innings lead as they scored 296 in reply to Hyderabad's 237 in their first essay.
In the second innings, however, Hyderabad, have already crossed the 300-run mark to take a solid 260-run lead with three wickets remaining.
At stumps, Quadri was batting on 77 and Alfred Absolem was on four.
Come tomorrow, Hyderabad would certainly look to declare the innings early on and try to bowl out the hosts for an outright win.
Resuming on 40 for no loss today, Hyderabad batsmen contributed well with Quadri top scoring with an unbeaten 77, followed by Ravi Teja (73).
Other notable run getters were Akshath Reddy (43), Hanuma Vihari (41) and TL Suman (30).
For Himachal, Akshay Chauhan finished with five for 80.
Brief scores:
Hyderabad: 237 & 319 for seven (Syed Quadri batting 77, D Ravi Teja 73; Akshay Chauhan 5/80).
Himachal Pradesh 1st innings: 296 all out.
J&K on top, eye outright win over Andhra
J&K on top, eye outright win over Andhra
Anantapur: Jammu and Kashmir produced a leathal bowling performance to stand on the verge of an outright win after reducing Andhra Pradesh to 79 for eight in their second innings at the end of third and penultimate day's play in a Group C Ranji Trophy match, here today.
With a fresh morning pitch on offer for J&K bowlers on the final day tomorrow, it will be a difficult task for Andhra to turn the match araound as they still need 63 runs for a win with just two wickets in hand.
For Andhra, M Suresh was batting on 27 off 49 balls, while giving him company was Kakani Harish (1).
Medium pacers Ram Dayal (3/24) and Mohammed Mushasir (3/10) wrecked havoc with the ball for J&K, sharing six wickets between them.
Earlier, Andhra were bowled out for 205 in their first innings in reply to J&K's 225 after the hosts resumed the day at 191 for eight.
Then Andhra bowlers came up with a splendid display to bundle out J&K for just 121 in their second essay to set up the platform for an easy outright win for the hosts.
Pacer David Paidikalva Vijaykumar (5/52) and off-spinner Shaik Basha (3/27) were the chief tormentor as J&K batting line-up crumbled like a pack of cards.
If someone thought the script is predictable from here, there were in for a surprise.
Needing just 142 runs for a win with over one-and-a-half day's play remaining, Andhra batsmen committed hara-kiri to find themselves in a tight corner at 79 for eight at stumps.
Brief Scores:
Jammu & Kashmir: 225 & 121 all out in 41.2 overs (Adil Rishi 25, Parvez Rasool 25; David Paidikalva Vijaykumar 5/52, Shaik Basha 3/27).
Andhra Pradesh: 191 & 79 for eight in 31 overs (M Suresh 27 not out; Mohammed Mudhasir 3/10, Ram Dayal 3/24).
