Ranji Roundup: Uttarakhand, Himachal off to good start

Khanduri ton powers Uttarakhand to 232/1 against Andhra

Opener Priyanshu Khanduri struck only his second century in a first-class career spanning seven years, helping Uttarakhand to a solid 232 for one in their Group B Ranji Trophy match against Andhra here on Wednesday.

The 29-year-old Khanduri was batting on 107, while giving him company was skipper Ravikumar Samarth on 30 at stumps on the first day.

Khanduri's opening partner Avneesh Sudha made 86 in 158 balls before being dismissed by left-arm spinner Lalith Mohan.

After Uttarakhand opted to bat, the duo of Khanduri and Sudha put on 157 runs for the first wicket to lay the foundation for a big first-innings total.

Khanduri, who made his first-class debut in 2017 and has a highest score of 117, hit 11 fours during his stay in the middle while facing 272 balls.

Himachal 263/6 against Vidarbha

In Nagpur, a 106-run stand for the seventh wicket between captain Rishi Dhawan (47 batting) and Mukul Negi (38 batting) lifted Himachal Pradesh to 263 for six against former champions Vidarbha.

Opting to field, Vidarbha bowlers picked up wickets at regular intervals and reduced them to 156 for five, when Negi joined Dhawan to do the rebuilding job.

Middle-order batter Ekant Sen made 44, while Amit Kumar and Akash Vasisht chipped in 32 and 33 respectively.

Harsh Dubey (3/62) and Akshay Wakhare (2/42) were the most successful bowlers for Vidarbha.

Brief scores:

In Vizianagaram: Uttarakhand 1st innings 232/1 in 87 overs (Priyanshu Khanduri 107 batting, Avneesh Sudha 86) vs Andhra.

In Nagpur: Himachal Pradesh 1st innings 263/6 in 90 overs (Rishi Dhawan 47, Mukul Negi 38; Harsh Dubey 3/62) vs Vidarbha.

In Ahmedabad: Puducherry 1st innings: 254/4 in 86 overs (Ajay Rohera 80, Akash Kargave 71, Jay Pande batting 53; Jaymeet Patel 2/39) vs Gujarat.

In Jaipur: Hyderabad 1st innings 261/5 in 88 overs (Rahul Singh 66, Rahul Radesh batting 53, Tanmay Agarwal 40; Kukna Ajay Singh 3/88) vs Rajasthan.

Yash Dhull scores another ton but Delhi shot out for 276

Yash Dhull continued his good form with second century of the season but left-arm spinner Nishunk Birla's six-wicket haul helped Chandigarh bowl out Delhi for a below-par 276 on the opening day of a Ranji Trophy group D match here on Wednesday.

At stumps, Chandigarh scored 63 for 1 with Shivam Bhambri remaining unbeaten on 42.

Dhull, who scored a century against Tamil Nadu, struck 21 boundaries in his 121 off 190 balls and added 96 with IPL star Ayush Badoni, who smashed three sixes in his 50-ball-49.

Nishunk picked up 6 for 72 on a track that offered some amount of turn. Off-spinner Vishu Kashyap picked up a couple of wickets even as Badoni tonked him for a few maximums.

But Delhi's middle-order flopped once again with skipper Himmat Singh failing to open his account.

The perennially controversial selection of Khsitiz Sharma (2), who walked into the team in place of left-hander Jonty Sidhu, whose century against Chattisgarh gave his team first innings lead, once again looked inadequate in terms of technique and application at this level.

It was Shivank Vasisht (31) and Hrithik Shokeen (16), who added 35 runs for the ninth wicket to take Delhi past 275-run mark.

Andre and Vijay propel TN to 299/7 vs Assam

C Andre Siddarth missed out on a ton by six runs while Vijay Shankar followed up his hundred with a 76 as Tamil Nadu scored 299 for 7 on the first day of their match against Assam in Guwahati.

Most of the other Tamil Nadu batters like former India A player Pradosh Ranjan Paul (27), T20 specialist Shahrukh Khan (28) and Mohamed Ali (27) all got starts but failed to convert them into big scores.

Brief Scores:

At Chandigarh: Delhi 1st Innings 276 in 71.4 overs (Yash Dhull 121, Ayush Badoni 49, Nishunk Birla 6/72) vs Chandigarh 1st Innings 63/1 in 16 overs (Shivam Bhambri 42 batting).

At Guwahati: Tamil Nadu 1st Innings 299/7 in 85 overs (C Andre Siddarth 94, Vijay Shankar 76) vs Assam.

At Ranchi: Jharkhand 1st Innings 247/7 in 72 overs (Sharandeep Singh 72, Hiten Kanbi 4/50) vs Saurashtra.

At Raipur: Chattisgarh 1st Innings 252/3 in 85 overs (Anu Tiwary 84, Sanjeet Desai 70 batting, Pratham Singh 1/14) vs Railways.

Anustup leads Bengal recovery with gritty ton

Veteran skipper Anustup Majumdar led from the front with a gritty century, steering Bengal out of early trouble before Karnataka staged a late comeback to leave Bengal at a uncomfortable 249/5 on the opening day of their Group C Ranji Trophy match in Bengaluru on Wednesday.

Karnataka's new-ball bowler Vasuki Koushik struck early, removing Bengal opener Shuvam Dey for a three-ball duck, and then dismissed Sudip Gharami after a painstaking 45-ball-5, reducing Bengal to 21 for 2 after opting to bat first.

40--year-old captain Anustup then steadied the innings, coming in at No. 4 and forming a crucial partnership with No. 3 Sudip Chatterjee, who scored a composed 50 off 120 balls.

Reminiscent of his century in the 2019-20 semifinal against Karnataka, Anustup showcased exceptional control, hitting 16 fours on his way to a century off 157 balls -- his first of the season.

The pair added 100 runs for the third wicket before Koushik struck again, dismissing Chatterjee en route to his impressive figures of 3/29.

Anustup remained unruffled, anchoring the innings with authority while Shahbaz Ahmed provided solid support.

However, Anustup's fine innings came to an end just after his century, trapped lbw by Shreyas Gopal.

Avilin Ghosh played a quick counter-attacking knock of 27 from 22 balls, smashing two sixes and a four, before debutant seamer Abhilash Shetty dismissed him late in the day.

Ghosh, looking to drive away from his body, edged to Mayank Agarwal at first slip, giving Shetty his maiden wicket.

At stumps, Shahbaz was unbeaten on 54 from 103 balls (6x4), alongside veteran keeper-batter Wriddhiman Saha, who was on 6 not out.

Jalaj's historic double

Domestic stalwart Jalaj Saxena became the first player in Ranji Trophy history to achieve the remarkable double of 400 wickets and 6000 runs, giving Kerala an advantage over Uttar Pradesh in Thumba.

The 37-year-old spin-bowling all-rounder, who surpassed the 6000-run mark with an 84 against Bengal last week, starred with the ball, claiming 5/56 in 17 overs to cross the 400-wicket milestone.

His efforts helped Kerala bundle out Uttar Pradesh for a modest 162 in 60.2 overs, with Basil Thampi providing support, taking 2/18.

In reply, Kerala reached 82/2 at stumps, trailing by 80 runs and looking to build on their strong start.

Shubham, Venky sizzle

Captain Shubham Sharma notched up his second century of the season, while Venkatesh Iyer's explosive ton put Madhya Pradesh firmly in command against Bihar in Patna.

After opting to bat, Madhya Pradesh got off to a steady start with contributions from openers Himanshu Mantri (41) and Rajat Patidar (45). However, both fell short of converting their starts, leaving Madhya Pradesh at 113/3.

Shubham then took charge, crafting an unbeaten 134 off 183 balls, laced with 11 fours and a six.

At the other end, Iyer displayed his trademark aggression, smashing 118 not out off just 113 balls, featuring four sixes and 11 fours, marking his second century in this format.

Their 234-run unbroken stand has placed Madhya Pradesh in a dominant position going into the next day.

Punjab spinners fox Haryana

Rookie spin duo Emanjot Singh Chahal and Jass Inder Singh spun a web around Haryana, sharing seven wickets to bowl out the group leaders for a mere 114 in 50.5 overs in Rohtak.

In only his second Ranji appearance, left-arm spinner Emanjot took 3/43, while debutant off-spinner Jass Inder starred with figures of 4/33.

Leg-spinner Mayank Markande also chipped in with 2/3 from 3.5 overs, as Punjab's spinners kept Haryana's batters under constant pressure.

In reply, Punjab reached 90/5 at stumps, thanks to Anmolpreet Singh's gritty 45 not out from 69 balls, trailing Haryana by 24 runs heading into the next day.

Brief Scores

In Bengaluru: Bengal 249/5; 78 overs (Anustup Majumdar 101, Sudip Chatterjee 55, Shahbaz Ahmed 54 batting; Vauski Kaushik 3/29) vs Karnataka.

In Thumba: Uttar Pradesh 162; 60.2 overs (Shivam Sharma 30; Jalaj Saxena 5/56). Kerala 82/2; 23 overs (Baba Aparajith 21 batting).

In Patna: Madhya Pradesh 381/4; 88 overs (Shubham Sharma 134 batting, Venkatesh Iyer 118 batting, Rajat Patidar 45) vs Bihar

In Rohtak: Haryana 114; 50.5 overs (Dheeru Singh 34; Jass Inder Singh 4/33, Emanjot Singh Chahal 3/43). Punjab 90/5; 37 overs (Anmolpreet Singh 45 batting; Jayant Yadav 2/33, Nishant Sidhu 2/21).