Rohtak: Punjab produced a fine bowling effort before their batsmen just about held their nerve to carve out a three-wicket win against Haryana on the third day of their low-scoring Group A match of the Ranji Trophy here today.
Overnight 117/5, Haryana were bowled out for 155 today, leaving Punjab a paltry target of 135 to chase. The hosts overhauled the target after much struggle to grab the six points.
Sandeep Sharma was the star with the ball for Punjab as he snared six wickets for 50 in his 17.2 overs. VRV Singh also chipped in with figures of 3/50 to round off a fine bowling performance by the home team.
The top-scorer for Haryana in the second innings was Avi Barot, who made 31 off 87 deliveries, including four hits to the fence.
Punjab made heavy weather of the chase but eventually pulled through to win the match with a day to spare.
The hosts found themselves a wicket down even before a single run had been scored. The wickets kept tumbling at regular intervals before Sandeep (37 not out) turned out to be the hero with the bat as well.
He shared a 71-run seventh wickets stand with Gurkeerat Singh (37) to take the home team past the finish line.
Sandeep's knock came off 65 balls and included a couple of boundaries. Gurkeerat was the more aggressive of the team, hitting three fours and a six in his 38-ball stay at the crease.
For Haryana, Mohit Sharma and Harshal Patel snapped up three wickets apiece.
Brief Scores:
Haryana: 163 and 155
Punjab: 184 and 135/7 in 45 overs (Sandep Sharma 37 not out, Gurkeerat Singh 37, Mohit Sharma 3/38).
Mumbai poised for huge win over Vidarbha
Mumbai poised for huge win over Vidarbha
Mumbai: Reigning champions Mumbai stood poised for a thumping victory over minnows Vidarbha after reducing them to 177 for 8, in a chase of 530, on day three of their Group A Ranji Trophy match today.
The hosts compiled a huge 381 for 4 declared in their second innings, riding on centuries from opener Aditya Tare (172 in 190 balls with 16 fours and 6 sixes) and South Africa -bound one down batsman Ajinkya Rahane (133 in 254 balls with 14 fours and one six), to set Vidarbha an improbable target of 530 for an outright win.
The visitors, who conceded a lead of 148 runs in the first innings, produced another totally inept batting display to face a massive defeat.
Barring a stroke-filled 69 from Shalabh Shrivastava, who hit 15 boundaries in his 91-ball innings before handing a tame catch to mid-on fielder and Mumbai skipper Zaheer Khan, the others caved in without a fight.
Zaheer, getting ready for the tough two-Test battle against South Africa next month, uprooted the middle stump of left-handed opener Faiz Fazal for a duck in the first over of the Vidarbha second essay to start the hosts' victory bid.
Vidarbha were later reduced to 33 for 3 when Akbar Khan and Shardul Thakur sent back Amol Ubarhande and Ranjit Paradkar cheaply before Shrivastava and Hemang Badani (19 in 69 minutes) stemmed the rot.
Once that fourth wicket partnership worth 73 in 89 balls was snapped by Thakur, who dismissed the left handed Badani, another procession of batsmen followed to leave the visitors with the mighty task of scoring 353 more runs for victory on the final day tomorrow.
The two Khans picked up a wicket apiece, Thakur got two while left-arm spinner Akshay Dabholkar also picked up two which included that of top scorer Shrivastava.
Brief scores: Mumbai 261 and 381 for 4 decl. (A Tare 172, A Rahane 133, S Yadav 49 not out; R Jangid 2 for 88). Vidarbha 113 and 177 for 8 (S Shrivastava 69, Shrikant Wagh not out 34; S Thakur 2 for 46, A Dabholkar 2 for 21).
Won't say Vidarbha attack wasn't good: Rahane
Won't say Vidarbha attack wasn't good: Rahane
Mumbai: South Africa-bound Ajinkya Rahane, who scored a century in Mumbai's second innings, dismissed suggestions that the Vidarbha attack was not strong enough to test the hosts' batting mettle in their ongoing Group A Ranji Trophy match here. "I won't say that their attack was not good. Umesh (Yadav) is an experienced bowler. They had Shrikant (Wagh) and other bowlers. A bowler needs just one ball to get the wicket, so batsmen have to concentrate on every delivery," said Rahane, who hit 133 in Mumbai's second innings tally of 381 for four declared and also added 260 with opener Aditya Tare (172).
"I was looking to get set and spend a lot of time at the wicket, which will also be a good batting practice for me. When they spread the field, then it was a bit difficult and I was constantly telling myself that this is the time to show focus, to show some hunger, and that is what I was thinking," he added.
Rahane, who has been included in the ODI as well as Test team to South Africa, considered his innings as a confidence booster ahead of the tough tour.
"It was a very crucial knock. When you score a hundred, every hundred is special and this hundred is also as special as the others. It was also important from the team's point of view as we wanted to win the match outright. I will take a lot of confidence from this innings," he said.
"Before going to South Africa, this game was crucial for me in terms of match practice. So I was just focussing on getting my rhythm back and give my 100 per cent for the team. "In the first innings too, I was looking to spend time at the crease, but getting out is not in your hands. You should have the right attitude and right intention and that is what matters. Scoring a hundred in the second innings is as special as scoring a hundred in the first innings. I am happy the way I am batting and the way our team is playing," Rahane added. At the end of day 3, Mumbai were poised to record a huge victory after setting Vidarbha an imposing target of 530 and then reducing the visitors to 177 for 8 in the second innings.
Bengal take six Services wickets, sniff 1st innings lead
Bengal take six Services wickets, sniff 1st innings lead
New Delhi: Bengal bowlers toiled hard to restrict Services to 261 for six, giving themselves a good chance to grab first innings lead on the third day of the Ranji Trophy group B encounter, here today.
With Services needing another 171 runs to get first innings lead, Bengal have a slight edge as they have to run into the home team's tail at the Airforce Ground in Palam.
For Services, a 131-run partnership between Vishnu Tiwary (71) and Soumya Ranjan Swain (56 batting) in 39.4 overs did raise visions of a splendid fightback but Bengal's 'Go-To Man' in this match Sourashis Lahiri dismissed Tiwary at the end of the day to get the initiative back.
Ashoke Dinda (3/75 in 25 overs) was the most successful bowler but Lahiri (2/62 in 19 overs) made the most impact as he removed Tiwary and Yashpal Singh (11) with couple of good deliveries.
While Tiwary was adjudged leg before as he tried to sweep, Yashpal was out when Wriddhiman Saha effected a brilliant stumping. Lahiri had tossed one up and Yashpal went for a drive and in the process lost his balance.
Saha whipped the bails in a flash and third umpire gave the batsman out. The morning session belonged to Bengal as they removed the top order quickly once the opening partnership produced 65 runs.
Anshul Gupta was the first to get out as he couldn't flash hard at a Dinda bouncer and the ball ballooned to gully where Anshutup Majumdar took the catch low down.
Gupta made 22 with three fours. His partner Pratik Desai was more aggressive as he took on Dinda pulling him for a boundary. A thick outside edge that flew past slip brought his 50 off 64 balls.
Immediately in the next ball Dinda again bowled a bouncer which Desai played an ugly pull shot which was caught by Shib Shankar Paul at short fine leg. Desai's 52 had eight boundaries. Nakul Verma didn't last long as Majumdar at silly point caught him for 10.
After Yashpal was dismissed, Services went into lunch at 122 for four. Rajat Paliwal (25) was out immediately after lunch as he was bowled by Dinda playing to wrong line. The delivery moved away after pitching.
After that Tiwary and Swain played sensibly as they hit boundaries as well as took singles and twos. Tiwary hit 7 fours in his 150 ball knock while Swain has 6 fours in the 175 balls he faced so far.
In the end, Tiwary's dismissal gave Bengal the upper hand. Brief Scores; Bengal 431. Services 261/6 (Vishnu Tiwari 71, Soumya Ranjan Swain 56 batting, Pratik Desai 52, Ashoke Dinda 3/75, Sourashis Lahiri 2/62).
Himachal thrash Assam by an innings and 221 runs
Himachal thrash Assam by an innings and 221 runs
Dharamsala: Himachal Pradesh trounced Assam by an innings and 221 run after the visiting batsmen collapsed miserably on the third and penultimate day of their Group C Ranji Trophy encounter here today.
After amassing a mammoth 463 for nine in their first innings in response to Assam's paltry 81 all out, Himachal bowled out the visiting side for 161 to record the huge win.
Assam were overnight 97 for six Dheeraj Jadhav put up a stiff resistance to post a half century. His 52-run knock came off 125 deliveries and included six hits to the fence.
His was the last Assam wicket to fall in what was otherwise a shambolic batting performance.
For Himachal, Rishi Dhawan picked up a five-wicket haul, conceding merely 58 runs in his 18.5 overs. Vikramjeet Malik also chipped in with figures of 3/40 in 20 overs.
Brief Scores:
Himachal Pradesh: 463/9d
Assam: 81 and 161 in 53.5 overs (Dheeraj Jadhav 52, Rishi Dhawan 5/58).
Match poised for interesting finish as Tripura bounce back
Match poised for interesting finish as Tripura bounce back
Porvorim: Tripura bowlers came back strongly to keep their hopes alive for an interesting finish as they bowled out Goa for 177 in their second innings on the penultimate day of the Ranji Trophy Group C match here today.
At draw of stumps, Tripura, who conceded 78-run first innings lead, were batting at 69 for two in their second essay with K B Pawan (33) and Y V Takawale (12) at the crease, chasing a target of 256.
Resuming at an overnight second innings score of eight for no loss, Goa lost three wickets quickly with the score of 41.
Swapnil Asnodkar was the first to go when he was run out for 17. Spinner Acharjee, who bowled economically, then dismissed A S Desai for 16. Sagun Kamat did not last long as Viki Shah cleaned bowled him for five with Goa struggling at 41 for three.
With wickets falling at regular interval, Keenan Vaz, coupled with H H Gadekar (20) to steady the boat for a while before the former fell soon after lunch for a well-made 32.
Thereafter Goa's last batsman -- B A Mangaldas -- who hit four sixes and two fours, added 56 valuable runs for the last wicket with Gadekar to take Goa to 177 before he fell to Mora Singh for 41. Tripura's Rana Dutta, M B Mora Singh, Sanjay Majumdar and K K Acharjee bowled well to take two wickets each, while Viki Saha took a wicket.
In reply, Tripura lost two quick wickets with Gadekar and A R Yadav claiming wicket apiece.
Karnataka takes upper hand over Odisha
Karnataka takes upper hand over Odisha
Cuttack: Karnataka posted 379 on the third and penultimate day to take a 153-run first innings lead before reducing Odisha to 169 for four in their Ranji Trophy Group A league encounter here today.
At stumps, Odisha had taken a 16-run lead with six wickets remaining.
Going into tomorrow's game, Karnataka will be looking to bundle out the visitors as early as possible and then try to overhaul the required target to score an outright win.
Resuming on 288 for four with yesterday's centurion Manish Pandey and CM Gautam at the crease, Karnataka went on to add another 91 runs.
Gautam (16), who added 48 runs for the fourth wicket with Pandey, soon got out, but Pandey, who resumed on 108, scored a patient 132 off 236 balls, laced with 15 fours and four sixes.
Abhimanyu Mithun, who had finished with impressive bowling figures of six for 52 in Odisha's first innings, also contributed with the bat. He scored a quickfire 48-ball 43 with the help of six boundaries and a six to help Karnataka take an upper hand.
Odisha, in their second innings, got off to a disastrous start with their top order back in the pavillion with scorecard reading 36 for three.
Govind Poddar and skipper Biplab Samantray tried to steady the boat a bit but the former fell for 74-ball 34.
Samantray, however, found an able partner in Abhilash Mallick and the duo stitched an unbeaten 95 runs together for the fifth wicket at the draw of stumps.
At close of play, Samantray was not out on 50, while Mallick was on 47.
It was HS Sharath (3/41), who accounted for all the three Odisha wickets on the day.
Brief scores:
Odisha: 226 & 169 for four in 60 overs (Biplab Samantray batting 50, Abhilash Mallick batting 47; HS Sharath 3/41).
Karnataka 1st innings: 379 all out (Manish Pandey 132, Abhimanyu Mithun 43; Suryakant Pradhan 3/66).
Parthiv misses double ton, Gujarat secure first innings lead
Parthiv misses double ton, Gujarat secure first innings lead
Jamshedpur: Gujarat skipper Parthiv Patel missed out on a double century but the visitors managed to secure a 63-run first innings lead over Jharkhand on the third and penultimate day of their Group A Ranji Trophy match here today. Gujarat declared their first innings after reaching 352 for nine, in reply to Jharkhand's 289 in their first essay at the Keenan Stadium here.
It was Parthiv Patel, who almost single-handedly guided Gujarat to 350-plus mark. He scored a brilliant 189 off 298 balls studded with 19 fours, besides putting on a solid 185-run partnership with opener Samit Gohel (80) for the third wicket. Resuming on 168 for two, former Indian wicketkeeper Parthiv, who was on 75 last night, continued scoring even after losing partner Gohel.
Jharkhand skipper Shahbaz Nadeem introduced spin and S S Quadri struck to claim Gohel's wicket for 80 that came off 242 deliveries with 11 hits to the fence.
The visitors, who were at 208 for three at the fall of Gohel, lost middle-order batsman Y Venugopal Rao (9), R H Bhatt (11), Akshar Patel (14) and Rakesh Dhruv (7) cheaply.
But even as wickets kept tumbling at the one end, Parthiv stood tall and battled it out for 470 minutes in the middle. He, unfortunately misread a delivery from Quadri and tossed an easy catch to Sunny Gupta who made no mistake. For the hosts, Quadri finished with four for 73, while Nadeem and Sunny Gupta scalped two wickets each.
In reply, Jharkhand were 28 for no loss in their second essay with opener Bhavin Thakker retired hurt at an individual score of two.
At stumps, Rameez Nemat was unbeaten on 17 and Bhavik Thaker was on two.
Brief scores:
Jharkhand: 289 & 28 for no loss (Rameez Nemat batting 17)
Gujarat 1st innings: 352 for nine decl (Parthiv Patel 189, Samit Gohel 80; Samar Quadri 4/73).
Prashant comes up with ton, match heads for interesting finish
Prashant comes up with ton, match heads for interesting finish
Jaipur: Prashant Gupta today struck a century as Uttar Pradesh set Rajastan a 361-run target on the third day of their Ranji Trophy Group B match, which is now headed for an exciting finish here.
Gupta scored 144 runs off 240 balls as UP declared their second innings at 319 for five after beginning the day at 46 for two at Sawai Mansingh Stadium.
Gupta's overnight partner and skipper Mohammed Kaif (19) could add only 15 runs to his total but Arish Alam (42) and Parvinder Singh (50 not out) batted well with him.
Paceman Aniket Choudhary (48) took all the three wickets that fell in the day.
In pursuit of the target, Rajasthan were 15 for no loss in four overs with Siddharth Saraf (4) and Vineet Saxena (11) to resume the innings tomorrow.
Gupta's knock came off 240 balls and he struck 21 fours and two sixes before being caught behind.
Brief Scores:
Uttar Pradesh 226 and 319/5d (Prashant Gupta 144, Parvinder Singh 50 not out ; Aniket Choudhary 3/48).
Rajasthan 185 and 15 for no loss in 4 overs.
J&K takes 1st innings lead as Beigh and Dayal shine on day 3
J&K takes 1st innings lead as Beigh and Dayal shine on day 3
Jammu: Pace duo of Samiullah Beigh and Ram Dayal ran through the Kerala middle-order as Jammu and Kashmir grabbed a first innings lead in their Ranji Trophy Group C match, here today.
Kerala had started the day at a strong 184 for two but Beigh (4/76) and Dayal (2/64) triggered a batting collapse to bowl out the the visitors for 302 at Gandhi Memorial Science College Ground.
Kerala opener VM Jagadeesh, overnight 86, completed his century before being dismissed for 106 by Waseem Raza.
The hosts then came out with yet another solid batting display as they were 111 for one, to extend their lead to 186 at the end of day three.
Adil Rishi was unbeaten on 68 off 80 balls and giving him company was Bandeep Singh (13). They lost Obaid Haroon (24), who was bowled by P Anthaf.
Brief Scores:
Jammu and Kashmir 377 and 111 for 1 in 27 overs.(A Rishi 68 batting; P Anthaf 1/25)
Kerala 1st innings: 302 all out in 114 overs. (V M Jagadeesh 106, P Prem 86; S Beigh 4/76).
Parthiv misses double ton, Gujarat secures first innings lead
Parthiv misses double ton, Gujarat secured first innings lead
Jamshedpur: Gujarat skipper Parthiv Patel missed out on a double century but the visitors managed to secure a 63-run first innings lead over Jharkhand on the third and penultimate day of their Group A Ranji Trophy match here today. Gujarat declared their first innings after reaching 352 for nine, in reply to Jharkhand's 289 in their first essay at the Keenan Stadium here.
It was Parthiv Patel, who almost single-handedly guided Gujarat to 350-plus mark. He scored a brilliant 189 off 298 balls studded with 19 fours, besides putting on a solid 185-run partnership with opener Samit Gohel (80) for the third wicket. Resuming on 168 for two, former Indian wicketkeeper Parthiv, who was on 75 last night, continued scoring even after losing partner Gohel.
Jharkhand skipper Shahbaz Nadeem introduced spin and S S Quadri struck to claim Gohel's wicket for 80 that came off 242 deliveries with 11 hits to the fence.
The visitors, who were at 208 for three at the fall of Gohel, lost middle-order batsman Y Venugopal Rao (9), R H Bhatt (11), Akshar Patel (14) and Rakesh Dhruv (7) cheaply.
But even as wickets kept tumbling at the one end, Parthiv stood tall and battled it out for 470 minutes in the middle. He, unfortunately misread a delivery from Quadri and tossed an easy catch to Sunny Gupta who made no mistake. For the hosts, Quadri finished with four for 73, while Nadeem and Sunny Gupta scalped two wickets each.
In reply, Jharkhand were 28 for no loss in their second essay with opener Bhavin Thakker retired hurt at an individual score of two.
At stumps, Rameez Nemat was unbeaten on 17 and Bhavik Thaker was on two.
Brief scores:
Jharkhand: 289 & 28 for no loss (Rameez Nemat batting 17)
Gujarat 1st innings: 352 for nine decl (Parthiv Patel 189, Samit Gohel 80; Samar Quadri 4/73).
TN-Saurashtra tie heads for a draw
TN-Saurashtra tie heads for a draw
Chennai: With the match heading towards a tame draw, both Tamil Nadu and Saurashtra 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 B Ranji Trophy match here.
In reply to Tamil Nadu's 565 for eight declared, Saurashtra reached 326 for three in their first innings at the close of play today with Cheteshwar Pujara unbeaten on 152 and Jaydev Shah on 133.
The visitors now trail the hosts by 239 runs with seven wickets in hand here at the t MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chepauk.
Come tomorrow, keen battle is on the cards as Saurashtra will be looking to topple the hosts' first innings total, while Tamil Nadu will be keen to restrict the visitors below 565.
Starting the day on 12 for one, Saurashtra lost overnight batsman -- Bhushan Chauhan -- early with no addition to his last night's score of three.
However, Pujara, resuming on eight, blasted 21 boundaries during his brilliant knock that came off 264 balls. He also added an unbeaten 260 runs with Jaydev for the fourth wicket.
Jaydev took 219 deliveries for his 133, which was laced with nine boundaries and as many as six sixes.
Brief scores:
Tamil Nadu 1st innings: 565 for eight declared (Abhinav Mukund 240, Dinesh Karthik 133; Jaydev Unadkat 4/99).
Saurashtra 1st innings: 326 for three in 93 overs (Cheteshwar Pujara batting 152, Jaydev Shah batting 133; R Prasanna 1/26).
MP bundled out for 90 as Baroda win by mammoth margin
MP bundled out for 90 as Baroda win by mammoth margin
Vadodara: Baroda completed the formalities in what turned out to be a lopsided contest as they thrashed Madhya Pradesh by 246 runs in a Ranji Trophy group B encounter at the Motibagh ground here today.
The match ended within an hour on the third day as 36 of the 40 wickets that fell were taken by the spinners from either side.
Chasing a target of 337, MP were bundled out for 90 in 44.4 overs after being out for 60 in the first innings.
Left-arm spinners Bharghav Bhatt (5/37) and Ketul Patel (2/15) shared seven wickets amongst themselves while offie Yusuf Pathan took the other three one a track where the ball turned square.It only took 16.4 overs on the day to finish the proceedings after MP started the day at 58 for five. Rameez Khan and Shubham Sharma scored 18 each while Naman Ojha and Mohnish Mishra contributed 16 and 14 respectively.
With 35 wickets falling in the first two days, BCCI secretary Sanjay Patel's state association might have some answering to do about the nature of the track prepared.
Brief Scores: Baroda 152 & 244.
MP 60 & 90 (Bharghav Bhatt 5/37). Baroda won 246 runs. Pts: Baroda 6; MP 0.
Sandeep Patil gives a pep talk to Services Ranji team
Sandeep Patil gives a pep talk to Services Ranji team
New Delhi: The chairman of senior selection committee Sandeep Patil today gave a 10-minute pep talk to the Services Ranji Trophy squad after the end of the third day's play against Bengal at the Airforce ground in Palam.
Patil, who has been a regular feature at the ground for the last three days was invited to the Services dressing room by team manager Wing Cdr Deepak Bhaskar.
The Services boys were seen listening to Patil with rapt attention after which he left the venue.
"Mr Patil had some words of wisodom for our boys. He told the boys that this is the first ever Ranji Trophy game of Services that he has ever watched. He told the boys that he is thankful to them for putting up a gritty fight against Bengal and his three days at the ground didn't go waste. Patil was happy in the manner that boys batted and bowled against a quality side like Bengal. He said that to succeed at the first-class level, self belief is the key," Wg Cdr Bhaskar said after the end of the interaction.
Wg Cdr Bhaskar also added that Patil has "praised the Airforce ground pitch" but Bengal coach Ashok Malhotra wasn't happy with the pitch.
"Have 20 matches on this track and you won't have a single outright result. This is a road not a cricket pitch. You can have three-point matches but not the six point ones. I can tell you that Ranji Trophy matches these days are not played on these kind of tracks. Even at Eden Gardens, we kept grass and had a result-oriented track," Malhotra didn't seem one bit amused.
