Ranji Trophy: Pujara's woes continue as Saurashtra struggle

Summary of all Ranji Trophy matches played on Saturday

Cheteshwar Pujara endured a horror Saturday after first being dismissed without troubling the scorers and then getting the news of being axed from Indian Test team as defending champions Saurashtra were made to follow-on in a group D Ranji Trophy match by 44-time champions Mumbai.

Having declared their first innings at 544 for 7 riding on Sarfaraz Khan's 275, Mumbai then dismissed Saurashtra for 220 on the third day with little-known pacer Mohit Avasthi (4/56) and left-arm spinner Shams Mulani (4/55) being wreckers-in-chief.

After being asked to follow-on, Saurashtra gave a better account of themselves in the second innings reaching 105 for no loss at stumps, with openers Snell Patel (64 no) and Harvik Desai (39 batting) at the crease.

However, it was Avasthi, who had a day to remember as he bowled one that came in and Pujara was trapped leg before due to lack of footwork. He survived only four balls.

In his brief stay, he looked completely out of sorts and Avasthi, then ran through the middle order picking up wickets of senior players Arpit Vasavada and Prerak Mankad.

Mumbai will be trying for bonus points as Saurashtra still need to score 220 runs to avoid innings defeat.

While the pitch is an easy one to bat and something that defending champions understood in the second innings when Harvik and Snell comfortably played the Mumbai bowlers during the 30 overs in the final session.

Mumbai's victory will also depend on how fresh Prithvi Shaw's bowlers are on the final day to pick up 10 Saurashtra wickets.

Brief Scores:

Mumbai 544/7 decl (Sarfaraz Khan 275, Ajinkya Rahane 129).

Saurashtra 220 (Sheldon Jackson 61, Cheteshwar Pujara 0, Mohit Avasthi 4/56, Sams Mulani 4/55) and 105/0 (f/o) (Snell Patel 64 batting).

Goa 181 and 394/5 decl (Snehal Kauthankar 165, Suyash Prabhudessai 73).

Odisha 189 and (target 387) 22/0

Gujarat take first innings lead; MP fight back

Rajkot: Gujarat took a 57-run first innings lead in the Elite A group Ranji Trophy game against Madhya Pradesh here on Saturday, but the central team fought back in their second essay.

Having shot out Madhya Pradesh for 274 in their first essay, Gujarat managed to post 331, courtesy a vital 54 by Karan Patel, who hit 10 boundaries and equally important 32 by Roosh Kalaria.

Gujarat was trailing by just 30 runs when they resumed their innings, and it was Karan Patel, who added 14 runs to his overnight score.

Kalaria also frustrated the MP bowlers, hammering six boundaries and when he fell Gujarat had already gone past MPs first innings total.

The number 10 and number 11 batters -- Arzan Nagwaswalla (18) and Siddharth Desai (23 not out) also chipped in with vital contributions as they added 41 runs for the last wicket and rubbed salt on the opposition wounds.

In the second essay, Shubham Sharma (70 not out), the top-scorer of the first innings, once again stood tall for MP and hammered a decent Gujarat attack into submission.

After MP lost openers cheaply, Sharma and the experienced campaigner Rajat Patidar (53, 8x4; 2x6) steadied the ship by adding 92 runs for the third wicket.

But Gujarat stormed back removing Patidar and rival skipper Aditya Srivastava (31) in quick succession.

When stumps were drawn, Sharma, who hammered eight boundaries, had Yash Dubey (14 not out) for company, as MP extended their overall lead to 145 runs.

Brief Scores: Madhya Pradesh 274 all out and 202/4 (Shubham Sharma 70 not out, Rajat Patidar 53; Chintan Gaja 2/33) against Gujarat 331 all out (Het Patel 72, Karan Patel 54; Ishwar Pandey 5/72, Gourav Yadav 4/89). MP lead by 145 runs.

At Saurashtra Cricket Association stadium, Ground C: Meghalaya: 148 and 191 (Chirag Khurana 75, Dippu Sangma 55 not out; Basil Thampi 4/43, Jalaj Saxena 3/28) versus Kerala 505/9 declared  (Rahul P 147, Rohan Kunnummal 107, Vathsal Govind 106 not out; Aryan Bora 3/105, Chirag Khurana 3/130). Kerala won by an innings and 166 runs.

Skipper Abhimanyu keeps Bengal in hunt with unbeaten fifty

Cuttack: Talented India A batter Abhimanyu Easwaran led from the front with an unbeaten 79 as Bengal fought back in their second essay to keep their hopes alive in their Ranji Trophy group B match against Baroda at Barabati Stadium here on Saturday.

Chasing a challenging 349 to win, Bengal were 146 for 2 on the penultimate day with Abhimanyu (79 from 114 balls; 4x4) batting alongside Anustup Majumdar on 22 (51 balls; 2x4) as the match is heading for a thrilling finish.

Bengal require 203 on the final day, while Baroda need eight wickets to seal the issue.

Having put up a sloppy batting display and failed to even bat out one session to be dismissed for 88 in the first innings, Bengal bounced back strongly in their second essay with an 89-run opening stand between Sudip Gharami and Abhimanyu.

But Baroda dealt a twin blow dismissing Gharami (27) and Writtick Chatterjee (0) with addition of just one run to have Bengal in a spot of bother with 90 for 2 inside 25 overs.

Abhimanyu and the seasoned Anustup Majumdar then took charge of the proceedings and ensured no further damage in their unbroken 56-run stand for the third wicket.

"If we can bat well in the first hour tomorrow, we can chase it down and go for win," skipper Abhimanyu said at the end of day three.

"It's all about the belief that we can turn it around and with the batting lineup we have we are ready to give everything. It's a decent wicket to bat on, if we can build good partnerships we can certainly chase it down."

The Bengal bowlers earlier turned it around after their batting debacle as they took the remaining five Baroda's wickets in the second innings with addition of just 111 runs.

Ishan Porel led the bowling show with 3 for 70 to return with match-haul of nine wickets. Akash Deep claimed 3 for 69 while Mukesh Kumar bagged 2 for 62 as Baroda were all out for 255 in 85.1 overs in their second innings.

"I would like to appreciate the way our bowlers brought us back in the game. Despite bowling for two back-to-back days, they did well.

"We know that we could not live up to our reputation in the first innings but we have worked hard, had belief and our bowlers have given us the chance to turn it around," the Bengal skipper added.

Brief Scores:

At Barabati Stadium: Baroda 181 and 255; 85.1 overs (Mitesh Patel 57, Kedar Devdhar 41; Akash Deep 3/69, Ishan Porel 3/70). Bengal 88 and 146/2; 41 overs (Abhimanyu Easwaran 79).

At Vikas Cricket Ground: Hyderabad 347 and 269/8 declared; 62 overs (Hanuma Vihari 106, Tilak Varma 63; Gaurav Gambhir 4/61, Jagjit Singh 4/79). Chandigarh 216 and 21/2; 8 overs.

Karnataka secure first innings lead; J&K in command vs Pondicherry

Chennai: Karnataka secured the first innings lead against Railways despite a ton by Arindam Ghosh (105) and Mohammad Saif's knock of 84 on the third day of the Ranji Trophy Elite Group C match here on Saturday.

Resuming at the overnight score of 213 for 3, Ghosh and Saif added 81 more runs and kept the Railways on course before leg-spinner Shreyas Gopal broke the 96-run fourth wicket partnership by dismissing the former.

Ghosh's batting was slow when compared to Friday but he hit two sixes on the trot to reach his ton. Gopal trapped Ghosh leg-before wicket to end a stand that was threatening to take the fight to the Karnataka team.

Left-handed batter Saif continued to bat well and ensured that there were no further losses till lunch as Railways moved to 303 for 4. Vidhyadhar Patil struck after the lunch interval, getting Upendra Yadav (12).  Skipper Karn Sharma was caught behind off Patil to leave the team at 329 for 6.

Saif struck four consecutive boundaries before being stumped by keeper S Sharath to give K Gowtham his fourth wicket.

Railways' batting faltered and they appeared set to concede a huge lead before Yuvraj Singh hit 48. His exit at 419 to Ronit More (3/67) saw the team slide to 426 all out, handing a 55-run lead to Karnataka.

India Test batter Mayank Agarwal started confidently in the second innings and has hit five fours and a six in his unbeaten 39. Devdutt Padikkal (4) fell early but R Samarth (20 batting) ensured that there were no further hiccups as Karnataka ended the day at 63 for 1, an overall lead of 118 runs with a day to go.

In the other match of the day, Abdul Samad blitzed a 68-ball century (103, 78 balls, 19 fours, 2 sixes) to help Jammu & Kashmir take a 83-run lead.

Pondicherry faltered in the second innings and the team was tottering at 113 for 9 at stumps on the third day as veteran off-spinner Parvez Rasool picked up five wickets.

Pondicherry is ahead only by 30 runs with one wicket standing and a defeat looks imminent on the final day.

Brief scores:

Karnataka 481 & 63 for one in 17 overs (Mayank Agarwal 39 batting) vs Railways 426 in 128.3 overs (Mrunal Devdhar 56, Vivek Singh 59, Arindam Ghosh 105 (197b, 12x4, 3x6), Mohammad Saif  84 (148b, 11x4, 1x6), Yuvraj Singh 48, K Gowtham four for 127, Ronit More three for 67, Vidyadhar Patil two for 77).

Pondicherry 343 & 113 for nine in 44 overs (Sagar Trivedi 26 batting, Parvez Rasool five for 29) vs Jammu and Kashmir 426 in 114.1 overs (Qamran Iqbal 96 (220b,13x4, 2x6), Jatin Wadhawan 69, Shubham Singh Pundir 51, Abdul Samad 103 (78b, 19x4, 2x6), Parvez Rasool 31, Abid Mushtaq 40, Sagar Trivedi five for 74, Sagar Udeshi three for 115).

Andhra slip to 100 for 4 in pursuit of 368 for win against Rajasthan

Thiruvananthapuram, Feb 19 (PTI) Identical scores of 79 by skipper Ashok Menaria and Mahipal Lomror enabled Rajasthan set Andhra a stiff target of 368 in their Ranji Trophy Elite Group E match here on Saturday.

Andhra lost four wickets including that of captain K S Bharat to be 100 for 4 at stumps on the third day.

Resuming at 97 for 2 on the third day, Rajasthan batters Lomror and Garhwal (38) could add only 18 runs before the latter fell to Manish. Menaria who came in at the fall of Rajesh Bishnoi (0) put on 41 runs with Lomror.

Menaria hit six fours and three sixes as he kept the scoreboard ticking and helped swell the Rajasthan lead. He was dismissed by Y Sandep to leave the team at 272 for 8.

No. 11 batter Aniket Choudhary smashed four boundaries in his 18-ball 23 to add to the woes of the Andhra bowlers.

Chasing 368 for a win, Andhra were dealt an early blow as Uppara Girinath fell for 1 to Aniket Chouhary (2/31).

Andhra lost three more wickets including that of skipper and star batter K S Bharat (6) and was 100 for 4 at stumps, needing another 268 runs to secure victory.

Brief scores:  Day 3: Services 176 all out in 78.4 overs and 204 all out in 83.5 overs (Hardik Sethi 56, Anshul Gupta 41, Dikshanshu Negi 3 for 22) vs Uttarakhand 248 all out in 79.2 overs (Kamal Singh 82, Dikshanshu Negi 69, Mayank Mishra 38, Arjun Sharma 3 for 31, Nitin Yadav 3 for 46) and 94 for 1 in 20 overs (Jay Bista 54 batting).

Rajasthan 275 all out in 59.2 overs and 316 all out in 92.2 overs (Mahipal Lomror 79, Ashok Menaria 79, Aditya Garhwal 38, K V Sasikanth 3/75) vs Andhra 224 all out in 86.2 overs (U M S Girinath 71, Sasikanth 34, Yara Sandeep 25, Aniket Choudhary 4 for 40, Shubham Sharma 3 for 69) and 100 for 4 in 28 overs (Ricky Bhui 31 batting).

Punjab in command vs Himachal Pradesh

New Delhi: Punjab bowlers complemented superb show by batters to put their team in the driver's seat against Himachal Pradesh in their group F Ranji Trophy fixture at the Kotla Stadium here on Saturday.

Mayank Markande grabbed 2/51, while Baltej Singh and Arshdeep Singh bagged one each to reduce Himachal Pradesh to 151/5 in their second essay, still needing 21 runs to overcome their first innings deficit.

Earlier, resuming on 394/3, Punjab put up a strong show lower down the order to notch 526 in their first innings.

Overnight 62, Mandeep Singh stitched a fine 71-run stand with Sanvir Singh (48) for the sixth wicket before getting out for 84.

Punjab also got significant contributions from Ashwini Kumar (22 not out from 38 balls) and lastman Arshdeep Singh (26 from 27 balls) to go past the 500-run mark and extend their lead to 172 runs.

Brief Scores

At Arun Jaitley Stadium, Kotla: Himachal Pradesh 354 and 151/5; 49.5 overs (Nikhil Gangta 42, Akash Vasisht 36 batting). Punjab 526; 113 overs (Prabhismaran Singh 123, Mandeep Singh 84, Sanvir Singh 48, Gurkeerat Singh Mann 46; Arpit Gupta 4/111).

Palam A Ground: Haryana 556. Tripura 304/4; 114 overs (Bishal Ghosh 136 batting, Samit Gohel 122 batting).

Maharashtra secure first-innings lead, shot out Assam for 248

Rohtak: Maharashtra put themselves in a dominant position after bundling out Assam for a paltry 248 in their first essay on the third day of their Elite Group G Ranji Trophy game here on Saturday.

The Ankit Bawne-led side were in the driver's seat and enforced the follow-on after which Assam ended the day at 82 for 3 in their second essay.

In pursuit of 415, Assam started on their overnight score of 81 for 2, but for the eastern team only talented Riyan Parag (88; 11x4;1x6) was the star performer as the other batters made a beeline to the dressing room.

Experienced left-arm spinner Satyajeet Bachhav (4/25), who hails from Nashik, ran riot as he grabbed four wickets, including that of Parag, whom he trapped in front of the wicket.

Parag only found an able ally in wicket-keeper Kunal Saikia (46 not out; 4x4) as the two added 70 runs for the sixth wicket.

But once Parag was dismissed, the Maharashtra bowlers led by Bachhav quickly removed the tail.

No Assam batter showed any resistance as it was a dominant show by the team from the west, who had in their first essay piled up a mammoth score of 415, riding on maiden double hundred by debutant Pavan Shah.

Assam also lost three wickets in the second essay, with openers Rishav Das (34), Subham Mandal (8) and Gokul Sharma (0) back to the changing room as

Maharashtra have a chance to secure full points on the last day at the Chaudhary Bansilal stadium.

Riyan Parag (35 not out) and Sarupam Purkayastha (2 not out), who are holding fort, will have to bat the whole day if their side has to avoid defeat.

Brief scores: Maharashtra 415 all out versus Assam 248 all out (Riyan Parag 88, Subham Mandal 49; Satyajeet Bachhav 4/25, Manoj Ingle 2/34) and 82/3. Assam trail by 85 runs.

At Sultanpur: Uttar Pradesh 301 all out and 32/2 versus Vidarbha 548/6 (Faiz Fazal 192, Akshay Wadkar 102 not out; Saurabh Kumar 3/160, Ankit Rajpoot 2/86). Uttar Pradesh trail by 215 runs.

Shahrukh's 148-ball 194 powers TN past Delhi

Guwahati: Fresh from a million dollar plus IPL contract and some quality time among world beaters in the Indian dressing room, M Shahrukh Khan showed his wares in red ball format with a magnificent 148-ball-194 that ensured Tamil Nadu a first innings lead against Delhi in the Ranji Trophy.

Coming in to bat at number seven with Tami Nadu in deep trouble, Shahrukh soaked up the pressure as he fell just six short of converting his maiden first-class century into a double but put Tamil in front with his 10 sixes and 20 fours.

Using his long levers and brute power, Shahrukh hit some flat sixes that crash landed on the stands and most of it was in the straight arc between long off and long on.

Resuming at a tricky 75 for two on third day after Delhi's innings ended at a commanding 452, Tamil Nadu made a strong riposte on the third day of the Elite Group H match with the 26-year-old Shahrukh leading the way.

Tamil Nadu were all out for 494 before stumps were called, securing a vital first-innings lead of 42 runs.

The experienced Baba Indrajith, too, made a handsome contribution, stroking his way to 117 off 149 balls at the Barsapara Stadium that witnessed a barrage of fours and sixes, leaving the formidable outfit from the country's north stunned.

On a day that truly belonged to Shahrukh, who was bought by Punjab Kings for Rs 9 crore in the IPL mega auction last weekend, left-arm spinner Vikas Mishra emerged as Delhi's most successful bowler as he returned figures of 6/108 after a hard day's work.

Seasoned left-arm seamer Pradeep Sangwan was smashed for 107 runs in his 21 overs while his pace colleague, Kuldip Yadav conceded 105 runs from 18 overs, all thanks to the aggressive batting by the duo of Indrajith and Shahrukh, who added 134 runs after their team had lost five wickets for just 162 runs.

Indrajith struck 17 fours and two sixes during his stay in the middle, before he got lbw to Nitish Rana.

The best was yet to come as Shahrukh put on a stand of 178 runs with wicketkeeper Narayanswami Jagadeesan, who chipped in with a 50 off 71 balls while enjoying his partner's belligerence from the non-striker's end.

Shahrukh reached his century in 89 balls and carried on in the same vein to not just rescue his team from a difficult position but also ensure three points for them.

In the other match of the group, Chattisgarh beat Jharkhand by eight wickets inside three days to get full points.

Brief scores:

Delhi 1st innings: 452 all out

Tamil Nadu 1st innings 494 all out in 107.5 overs (Shahrukh Khan 194, Baba Indrajith 117; Vikas Mishra 6/108).

Jharkhand 169 and 133 (Utkarsh Singh 42, Sumit Ruikar 4/29)

Chattisgarh 174 and (target 129) 129/2 (Akhil Herwadkar 62).

Points: Chattisgarh 6 Jharkand 0.

Manipur crush Arunachal Pradesh by an innings and 25 runs

Kolkata: Manipur pacers put up a fine exhibition of seam bowling to defeat Arunachal Pradesh by an innings and 25 runs in their Ranji Trophy Plate group fixture at Calcutta Cricket and Football Club ground here on Saturday.

Arunachal Pradesh, who conceded a 177-run first innings lead, were bundled out for 152 in 53.3 overs with Kangabam Singh becoming the wrecker-in-chief in their second essay grabbing 4 for 25.

Bishworjit Konthoujam and Rex Rajkumar accounted for two wickets each, while left-arm spinner L Kishan Singh, who made a dream debut bagging a hattrick in the first innings, claimed 1 for 28 as they wrapped the issue with a day to spare.

Singh was the hero of the first innings when he dismissed Kamsha Yangfo, Akhilesh Sahani and Suraj Tayam off successive deliveries as Manipur bundled out Arunachal Pradesh for 119 in 57 overs after they opted to bat.

In reply, Manipur were bowled out for 296 with opener Al Bashid Muhammed topscoring for 79 while skipper Narisingh Yadav made a crucial 45 batting at No 7.

Brief Scores:

At Jadavpur University Second campus, Saltlake: Bihar 686/5 declared. Mizoram 298/7; 108 overs (Taruwar Kohli 151, Uday Kaul 96; Sachin Kumar 3/65).

At Videocon Academy, Saltlake: Sikkim 302 and 197/6; 58 overs (Codanda Ajit Karthik 61; Abu Nechim 2/22). Nagaland 412; 114.3 overs (Chetan Bist 115, Hokaito Zhimomi 105, Abu Nechim 61 not out, Yugandhar Singh 52, Srikant Mundhe 49; Palzor Tamang 5/33).

At CC&FC: Arunachal Pradesh 119 and 152; 53.3 overs (Akhilesh Sahani 50; Kangabam Singh 4/25). Manipur 296; 96.1 overs (Al Bashid Muhammed 79, Narisingh Yadav 45; Akhilesh Sahani 3/76). Manipur won by an innings 25 runs.