Bilaspur, Oct 20 Himachal Pradesh were trailing by another 244 runs in the second innings on Day Three of their Ranji Trophy Elite Group D clash against Mumbai, for whom India batter Sarfaraz Khan struck a fine 154 here on Tuesday.
Sarfaraz made 154 off 228 balls with 19 fours while wicketkeeper-batter Akash Anand made 117 (239 balls, 14 fours) as Mumbai declared their first innings at a massive 528 for eight.
In reply, hosts Himachal Pradesh were 144 for three, behind by another 244 runs with another day’s play remaining in the second round match.
Sarfaraz forged two key partnerships in the middle to bolster Mumbai’s total, adding 68 runs for the fourth wicket with Siddhesh Lad (87) and 210 runs with Anand for the fifth.
Shams Mulani, Sylverser D’Souza, and Mohit Awasthi claimed one wicket apiece before stumps were drawn to keep HP under the pump here.
Mumbai had resumed the third day’s play at 398 for four with Sarfaraz starting on 139 not out.
At stumps, Pukhraj Mann was on 38 accompanied by Vaibhav Kalita on 21 here at the Luhnu Cricket Ground.
In Chennai, a superb hat-trick for R Sai Kishore (6/34) powered Tamil Nadu to a massive victory by an innings and 66 runs against Uttarakhand inside three days.
Uttarakhand, who made a lowly 134 in reply to Tamil Nadu’s 313 in the first innings, were shot out for a mere 113 after resuming at 9/1 on the third day with Sai Kishore wreaking havoc.
Dega Nishchal (25 off 61 balls) was the only batter to provide any resistance.
Sai Kishore dismissed Lakshya Raichandani (19), Saurabh Rawat (0), and Aditya Rawat (0) on the final three balls of the 43rd over to record his hat-trick.
Railways, meanwhile, reached 305 for six and were behind Rajasthan’s first innings total of 497 by another 192 runs.
Resuming at 46 for one, Railways batted all day long to keep Rajasthan at bay, but still needed more from their remaining batters to avoid conceding a lead in the first innings.
Eshaan Goyal (64), Bhargav Merai (73), and Ravi Singh (53) led the reply for the Railways at the Sawai Man Singh Stadium.
Haryana, who had beaten Chandigarh inside two days, are at the top of the points table in Group D after their victory by an innings and 24 runs in the second round.
Brief scores:
In Bilaspur: Himachal Pradesh 140 & 144/3 in 56 overs (Pukhraj Mann 38 not out; Mohit Awasti 1/18) trail Mumbai 528/8 declared in 151 overs (Musheer Khan 57, Siddhesh Lad 87, Sarfaraz Khan 154, Akash Anand 117; Jitender Rana 4/108) by 244 runs.
In Chennai: Tamil Nadu 313 beat Uttarakhand 134 & 113 in 45.4 overs (Dega Nishchal 25; R Sai Kishore 6/34, Ajith Ram 4/33) by an innings and 66 runs. Points: Tamil Nadu 7, Uttarakhand 0.
In Jaipur: Rajasthan 497 lead Railways 305/6 in 112 overs (Eshaan Goyal 64, Bhargav Merai 73, Ravi Singh 53; Kukna Ajay Singh 2/88) by 192 runs.
(PTI News)
