Mumbai hold all aces at the end of fourth day

Mumbai took control of their Ranji Trophy Elite Group final, pegging Tamil Nadu back to 102 for 3 after setting them an improbable victory target of 377. Mumbai now need seven more wickets to win, while Tamil Nadu need a further 274 runs. Of all probable results, a draw looks the least likely.

Tamil Nadu took an overly cautious approach at the beginning of their chase and suffered in the process. Sadagoppan Ramesh (6) drove Ajit Agarkar on the up to Wasim Jaffer in the fifth over of the innings. Sridharan Sriram, at his dour best, played out 48 balls for 5 before being trapped plumb in front by Sairaj Bahutule.

With Ramesh and Sriram gone, Tamil Nadu were down in the dumps. Their postion deteriorated further when S Suresh, after playing some authoritative drives in an innings of 44, lost his off stump to a careless shot. At 62 for 3 in the 24th over, Tamil Nadu had a long way to go.

Hemang Badani (23 not out) and S Badrinath (12 not out) realised this and took their team to stumps without further damage. The final day will be a long, hard one for Tamil Nadu, as Mumbai hold all the aces.

Mumbai had begun the fourth day reasonably placed, although they had lost three quick wickets yesterday evening to slip from 210 for 3 to 228 for 4. Amol Mazumdar (7) was snapped up by Suresh early on and this meant that Bhavin Thakkar had to bolster the batting in the company of Bahutule. Thakkar began nervously, playing and missing, but settled into a solid groove.

Bahutule (27) helped add 48 runs for the sixth wicket before he was unluckily run out. Thakkar's straight drive was defelected into the stumps by MR Shrinivas, the bowler, with Bahutule stranded short of his crease.

Thakkar more than made up for the part he played in Bahutule's run out, batting stoically for 66 before retiring hurt with cramps. In their search for quick runs, Mumbai lost Agarkar early. Ramesh Powar then used the long-handle to good effect, clouting 53 off just 64 balls to take Mumbai to a healthy 387 for seven declared.