A summary of the third day's play in the Ranji Trophy league matches at various venues across the country.
Riding on superb bowling by Swapnil Singh (4-74), Baroda bundled out Karnataka for 302, thereby taking a slender 33-run lead on the third and penultimate day of their Group A match in Mysore.
However, defending champions Karnataka fought back by reducing Baroda to 204 for eight in their second innings at the close of play.
With the visitors now leading by 237 runs with just two wickets remaining, the game is poised for an interesting finish with both teams having a chance of posting a victory.
Having resumed at 235 for six, Karnataka came close to overhauling Baroda's first innings total of 335, with the help of some fine batting by the tail-enders, but in the end, they fell short. Abrar Kazi (35 not out) and Abhimanyu Mithun (40) chipped in with crucial runs to keep their team's hopes of taking a lead alive but Baroda's left-arm spinner Swapnil foiled their plans.
In their second innings, Baroda got off to a poor start, losing both their openers Saurabh Wakaskar (0) and Kedar Devdhar (0) for a nought with paceman Arvind Sreenath (3/27) ripping through the top order with a three-wicket haul. But first-innings centurion, Deepak Hooda came to Baroda's rescue with an all-important 67 (135b, 10x4) to prevent a complete collapse, adding 65 runs for the fifth wicket with Irfan Pathan (28).
Brief scores:
Baroda: 335 & 204 for 8 in 67 overs (Deepak Hooda 67, Arvind Sreenath 3/27, Ronit More 2/50).
Karnataka: 302 all out in 100.5 overs (Abrar Kazi 35 not out, Abhimanyu Mithun 40, Swapnil Singh 4/74, Gagandeep Singh 2/52).
Delhi concede small first innings lead vs Maharashtra
Delhi skipper Gautam Gambhir missed out on a hundred as the visitors conceded a slender 23-run first innings lead against Maharashtra in Pune.
In reply to Maharashtra's first innings score of 330, Delhi were all-out for 307 after starting the day at a relatively comfortable 240 for four.
Maharashtra have reached 187 for five in their second innings with an overall lead of 210 runs and would be looking to play out the day to bag three points.
Skipper Gambhir, who started the day on 93, could add only one run to his individual score as seamer Chirag Khurana dismissed him caught by Dominic Joseph in the second over of the third day. Gambhir's 94 off 222 balls had seven fours and a six and he added 92 runs with another veteran Rajat Bhatia (65).
Brief Scores:
Maharashtra: 1st Innings 330 & 187/5 (Harshad Khadiwale 63, Chirag Khurana 63, Sumit Narwal 2/43, Parvinder Awana 2/42).
Delhi: 307 (Gautam Gambhir 94, Virender Sehwag 66, Rajat Bhatia 65, Anupam Sanklecha 4/62).
Rajasthan run through Odisha for bonus point win
Rajasthan romped past Odisha by 10 wickets to win with a bonus point on day three of the Group B match in Balangir.
Odisha, starting the day at 144 for nine, failed to add to their first innings total before being bowled out for 199 with Rajasthan enforcing the follow-on. Rajasthan had made 305 in their first innings.
While speedsters Pankaj Singh and Deepak Chahar starred in the first innings, today was the turn of rookie left-arm medium pacer Tanveer-ul-Haq, who picked four wickets in 7.4 overs. Captain Pankaj did his bit in the second innings too by snaring up three wickets in 14 overs.
Rajasthan, set a 39-run target, got home in 6.4 overs with Robin Bist (20*) and Pranay Sharma (21*) in the middle. Rajasthan now have 17 points from seven matches including two wins, as many losses and three draws. Odisha lie at the bottom with eight points from six matches.
Brief scores:
Rajasthan: 305 and 42/0.
Odisha: 144 and 199 (Anurag Sarangi; Pankaj Singh 3/50, Tanveer-ul-Haq 4/29).
Sriram's ton guides AP to 301/6 against HP
Murumulla Sriram struck a hundred as Andhra Pradesh reached 301 for six in their first innings against Himachal Pradesh on the third day of their
Group C match in Dharamsala.
After a washout yesterday, Sriram struck a 233-ball 105 to help the side reach a comfortable position against hosts. Sriram struck 10 fours during his knock.
Andhra were also helped by AG Pradeep's 50 and Ricky Bhui's 46. For HP, medium pacer Rishi Dhawan picked up two wickets for 98 runs in 27.2 overs.
Brief Scores:
Andhra Pradesh 1st Innings: 301/6 in 88.2 overs (Murumulla Sriram 105, Rishi Dhawan 2/98).
Hyderabad reach 377/7 against Jharkhand
Akshath Reddy struck a patient hundred but Hyderabad were reduced to 377 for seven in reply to Jharkhand's 556 on the third day of their
Group C match in Ranchi.
Reddy's knock was the standout effort even though Syed Quadri (73) and Ashish Reddy (54 batting) also made notable contributions to the team's fighting performance in reply to a mammoth score.
For the hosts, pacer Varun Aaron was the pick of the bowlers with three wickets off his 23 overs, which cost 98 runs. Rituraj Singh also chipped in with two wickets in his 22 overs.
Brief Scores:
Jharkhand: 556/9d
Hyderabad: 377/7 in 104 overs (Akshath Reddy 133, Syed Quadri 73, Varun Aaron 3/98).
Rawat shines as Railways reach 213 for four vs J&K
Mahesh Rawat's quickfire unbeaten 44 and shared 75 run unbroken fifth wicket stand with Arindam Ghosh as Railways reached 213 for four against Jammu and Kashmir on a curtailed third day in New Delhi.
After second day's play was washed out, 54 overs was possible as Railways added another 163 runs to their total. Rawat's 44 came off 54 balls with eight fours while Ghosh was on 31 off 60 balls.
Earlier No 3 Rohan Bhosale scored a patient 54 off 159 balls with four boundaries and a six adding 86 for the second wicket with Nitin Bhille (45). He also added 44 runs with the portly Arnab Nandy (33).
Brief Scores:
Railways: 213 for four in 77 overs (Rohan Bhosale 54, Mahesh rawat 44 batting, Arindam Ghosh 31 batting, Nitin Bhille 45, Arnab Nandi 33, Umar Nazir 1/38).
Image: Baroda's Deepak Hooda (left) in action against Karnataka in Mysore.
Photo: PTI
