Ranji Trophy 2019-20 | Elite Group A - Punjab, Gujarat, Delhi in command after day one
Punjab, Gujarat, and Delhi ended day one of the final round of league matches in commanding positions against Bengal, Andhra, and Rajasthan respectively. Elsewhere, Hyderabad and Vidarbha exchanged blows in an evenly contested opening day at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad.
Vinay Choudhary six-fer leaves Bengal reeling
Opting to bat first in Patiala, Bengal lost both their openers to medium-pacer Baltej Singh within the first 10 overs. And despite all the middle-order batsmen getting starts — with Manoj Tiwary kicking on to hit a half-century — the visitors were bundled out for a mere 138. It was the left-arm spin of Choudhary (six for 54) that proved brutal for Bengal’s hopes as a total of five batsmen failed to open their account at all. Tiwary remained on 73, with seven fours and a six. In reply, Punjab reached 93 for three at stumps with skipper Mandeep Singh at the crease on 29.
Prateek Reddy fifty keeps Hyderabad intact
Put into bat, Hyderabad were reduced to 17 for two — with both openers falling cheaply — before Rahul Buddhi and Ravi Teja pushed back against the defending champions with an 80-run stand. Despite looking fluent, Teja fell six short of his fifty, having struck five fours and two sixes. Reddy joined Buddhi and added 46 to the total before Rajneesh Gurbani (three for 48) and Yash Thakur (four for 44) triggered a mini-collapse to leave the hosts struggling at 151 for seven. However, Reddy held firm, hitting eight fours en route his unbeaten 76, and took his side to 239 for seven at stumps with help from Mehdi Hassan (27 not out).
Andhra bundled out for 177 on day one
Arzan Nagwaswalla (four for 18) and Axar Patel (three for 33) proved the chief destroyers for Gujarat as they blew their hosts Andhra away for 177 on day one. The hosts have Karan Shinde (49) and Bodapati Sumanth (40) to thank for getting them past the 150-mark, given that they were reduced to 67 for five after lunch. Earlier in the day, the openers gave Andhra a decent start with a half-century stand to begin with, before the left-arm spin of Siddharth Desai opened the floodgates. In reply, Gujarat reached two for no loss at stumps in Nadiad.
Hiten Dalal, middle-order make merry in Delhi
Rajasthan skipper Ashok Menaria’s decision to put Delhi into bat backfired as Anuj Rawat and Dalal put on 142 for the first wicket in a little more than 25 overs. Rawat’s (45) dismissal triggered a mini-collapse with skipper Dhruv Shorey falling in the very next over, while Dalal was back in the hut soon after completing his century. His 93-ball 102 included 18 fours and a six, but Delhi slipped from 142 for no loss to 158 for three — and 189 for four after lunch. However, Jonty Sidhu and Himmat Singh joined forces and added another 147 to the total, before both threw their wickets away eight and 10 runs short of their centuries respectively. At stumps, Delhi reached 389 for six.Â
