Ranji Trophy: Dhull And Doseja Take Delhi To Ascendancy, Shaw, Nabi, Nischal And Imliwati Shine

Cricket Association Pondicherry Siechem Ground: Yash Dhull and Ayush Doseja have powered Delhi into a commanding position on day three of their Ranji Trophy Elite Group D clash against Himachal Pradesh at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Monday.Dhull struck a fluent 70 off 59 balls, while Doseja remained unbeaten on 62, hitting eight boundaries, as Delhi raced to 196/4 in just 32 overs before bad light brought an early end to the day’s play. The duo stitched together a brisk 125-run stand in 19.3 overs after Delhi were reduced to 53/3 and extended the hosts’ overall lead to 329 runs. Earlier in the day, Delhi secured a 133-run first-innings lead by bowling out Himachal Pradesh for 297. Senior pacer Navdeep Saini led the attack with figures of 3-52, while Money Grewal chipped in with 2-47. With six points in sight, Delhi could declare overnight to push for an outright win on the final day. At the BKC Ground, Chhattisgarh were left reeling at 175/6 at stumps and trail Mumbai by 241 runs. In the morning, Chhattisgarh took out the remaining two wickets to bowl out Mumbai for 416. In reply, Chhattisgarh started brightly with an 85-run opening stand between Ayush Pandey (50) and Shashank Chandrakar (43). But Mumbai’s spinners Himanshu Singh (2/33), Musheer Khan (2/29), and Shams Mulani (2/41) triggered a middle-order collapse and reduced the visitors to 175/6. Ashutosh Singh (34) and Shashank Singh (20 not out) are offering brief resistance, but with only four wickets in hand and the follow-on threat looming, Chhattisgarh face a daunting task on the final day of the contest. At the Sher-e-Kashmir Stadium, Jammu and Kashmir sealed a commanding victory over Rajasthan by an innings and 41 runs. Pace-bowling all-rounder Auqib Nabi continued his great show by picking 7-24 in 11 overs, dismantling Rajasthan’s hopes of a comeback after they resumed day three at 41/5 and were eventually bowled out for 89. At the Cricket Association Pondicherry Siechem Ground, Rain and poor light restricted play to just 25 overs on day three of the clash between Hyderabad and Pondicherry. Persistent drizzle throughout the day hampered the ground staff’s efforts, and fading light forced an early end to proceedings. Pondicherry were reduced to 92/8, with B Punnaiah leading the charge through figures of 3-10, while G Anikethreddy, Chama Milind, and Tanay Thyagarajan were other wicket-takers, as Hyderabad still have a healthy lead of 343 runs. In terms of Group A games, Nagaland staged a remarkable recovery against a much-fancied Tamil Nadu at the BCCI Centre of Excellence Ground, courtesy of a sensational unbroken 200-run sixth-wicket partnership between Dega Nischal and Imliwati Lemtur, though they still trail by 147 runs. Facing the threat of a follow-on, Nagaland were rescued by opener Nischal, who remained unbeaten on 161 off 350 balls with 24 boundaries, and Lemtur, who hit a composed 115 not out off 203 deliveries, striking 17 fours and three sixes. The duo displayed grit and control to lift their side from a precarious position and keep them firmly in the contest heading into the final day. Meanwhile, Andhra were left struggling at 43/2 on a rain-hit day three and trail Baroda by 320 runs after the visitors posted a formidable 363 in their first innings. India wicketkeeper KS Bharat made just eight this time as Andhra face an uphill battle to avoid a follow-on. Reigning champions Vidarbha are primed for taking the lead against Jharkhand in Nagpur after a second successive ton from Aman Mokhade, who hit 145. Senior India leg-spinner Karn Sharma top scored with 121 while Aaradhya Yadav retired hurt on 101 as Uttar Pradesh reached 380/6 in 128 overs and lead Odisha by 137 runs in Kanpur. Meanwhile, in Group C, at Eden Gardens, Bengal tightened their grip over Gujarat by ending day three with a lead of 282 runs. Sudip Gharami’s second successive half-century and Anustup Majumdar’s 44 not out guided Bengal to 170/7 after bowling Gujarat out for 167. The match also saw Kazi Saifi becoming the first player to be added as an injury replacement after Sudip Chatterjee suffered a right knee injury. In Ramnagar, fifties from Yuvraj Choudhary (92), Bhupen Lalwani (78) and Kunal Chandela (50) took Uttarakhand to 310/5 and trail Railways by 23 runs. Regarding Group B clashes, at the PCA New Cricket Stadium, Kerala were reduced to 247/6 at stumps and trail Punjab by 189 runs. Barring Ankit Sharma, none of Kerala’s other top order batters went past a half-century. Prithvi Shaw’s blistering 222 powered Maharashtra to a commanding position against Chandigarh, as they declared their second innings at 359/3 in just 52 overs. Set a daunting target of 464, Chandigarh reached 125/1 at stumps. Karnataka’s hopes of forcing a result were hampered by bad light on day three of their clash against Goa. With Goa at 171/6 and still trailing by 200 runs, Karun Nair’s 174 remains the defining effort as a first-innings lead now appears Karnataka’s best outcome. In Rajkot, Yash Dubey (159) and Saransh Jain (103 not out) helped Madhya Pradesh take a 95-run lead over Saurashtra after being 203/7, before rain halted play. For Saurashtra, skipper Jaydev Unadkat took four wickets. Brief Scores: Delhi 430 and 196/4 in 32 overs (Yash Dhull 70, Ayush Doseja 62 not out) lead Himachal Pradesh 297 (Sidhant Purohit 70; Navdeep Saini 3-52) by 329 runs. Mumbai 416 (Ajinkya Rahane 159, Siddhesh Lad 80; Aditya Sarwate 5-103, Ravi Kiran 3-53) lead Chhattisgarh 175/6 in 60.3 overs (Ayush Pandey 50, Shashank Chandrakar 43; Musheer Khan 2-29, Himanshu Singh 2-33) by 241 runs. Jammu & Kashmir 282 (Abdul Samad 76; Deepak Chahar 4-39) beat Rajasthan 152 & 89 (Deepak Hooda 28; Auqib Nabi 7-24) by an innings and 41 runs. Hyderabad 435 in 134.5 overs (Rahul Singh Gahlaut 114; Sagar Udeshi 4-110) lead Puducherry 92/8 in 34 overs (Anand Bais 41; B Punnaiah 3-10) by 343 runs. Andhra 43/2 in 16 overs trail Baroda 363 by 320 runs Nagaland 365/5 in 127 overs trail Tamil Nadu 512/3d by 147 runs Vidarbha 239/2 in 88 overs trail Jharkhand 332 by 89 runs Uttar Pradesh 380/6 in 128 overs lead Odisha 243 by 137 runs Bengal 170/6 in 48 overs and 279 lead Gujarat 167 by 282 runs Kerala 247/6 in 87 overs trail Punjab 436 by 189 runs Chandigarh 129/1 in 34 overs trail Maharashtra 359/3d and 313 by 335 runs Kerala 247/6 in 87 overs trail Punjab 436 by 189 runs Also Read: LIVE Cricket ScoreMadhya Pradesh 355/9 in 135 overs lead Saurashtra 260 by 95 runs Article Source: IANS