J&K two wickets away from victory

Andhra 205 (Bharat 39, Mudhasir 4-49) and 79 for 8 (Mudhasir 3-10, Dayal 3-24) need another 63 runs v Jammu & Kashmir 225 and 121 (Vijaykumar 5-52)
Scorecard

20 wickets fell in Anantapur on a dramatic third day, with Jammu & Kashmir needing just two more scalps to secure a win over Andhra.

Andhra, who began the day at 191 or 8, were quickly bundled out for 205 - 20 runs short of J&K's first-innings total of 225. The visitors would have expected to make full use of their slender advantage, but they fared poorly in their second innings and were cleaned up for a paltry 121 in 41.2 overs, with Paidikalva Vijaykumar being the pick of the Andhra bowlers, finishing with 5 for 52.

This meant that Andhra needed just 142 runs to register their first win of the season, but their chase began in disastrous fashion, as the opener Prasanth Kumar was dismissed in the very first over. The hosts continued to lose wickets at regular intervals, and failed to produce any significant partnership, as Ram Dayal and Mohammed Mudasir notched three wickets each.

Andhra were rattling at 57 for 8, but the two batsmen at the crease - Marripuri Suresh and Kakani Harish- survived 10.4 overs to finish the day at 79, and needing another 63 runs for an unlikely victory.

Hyderabad 237 and 319 for 7 (Quadri 77*, Ravi Teja 73, Chauhan 5-80) lead Himachal Pradesh 296 by 260 runs
Scorecard

Dwaraka Ravi Teja and Syed Quadri struck half-centuries, as Hyderabad batted out the entire third day to build a lead of 260 against Himachal Pradesh in Dharmasala.

Starting the day at 40 for 0, Hyderabad were buoyed by a 73 from Ravi Teja, which included 12 fours. He added 82 for the third wicket with Hanuma Vihari, as the visitors looked steady after 57 overs. However, medium-pacer Akshay Chauhan struck with two quick wickets, before Ravi Teja was dismissed by Rishi Dhawan in the 69th over, leaving the team at 231 for 5. Chauhan eventually ended the day with 5 for 80.

But Hyderabad recovered with another crucial partnership - a 59-run sixth-wicket stand between Quadri and Habeeb Ahmed - that helped them close in on the 300-run mark. Quadri remained unbeaten on 77, having smashed 14 fours, as Hyderabad finished at 319 for 7.

Tripura 136 and 159 for 3 (Singha 57*, Pawan 51) trail Assam 526 for 5 dec (Jadhav 194, Tarjinder 99) by 231 runs
Scorecard

An unbeaten 70 from Gokul Sharma helped Assam to 526, as they built a huge 390-run first-innings lead against Tripura in Agartala.

Gokul hit eight fours during the innings and added an unbeaten 69 for the sixth wicket with Jamaluddin Syed Mohammad, after Niraj Patel had departed in the morning for 66, as Assam eventually declared after 141 overs.

Tripura, in reply, began slowly as the opener Rajib Saha was bowled by Arup Das in the eighth over. The hosts, however, recovered with an 87-run second-wicket partnership between Samrat Singha and KB Pawan, as the pair whacked a total of 14 fours.

Pawan was dismissed for 51 in the 47th over, but Singha remained unbeaten on 57 as the hosts ended the day at 159 for 3, needing another 231 runs to avoid an innings defeat.

Goa 297 for 5 (Gadekar 86*, Kamat 83) trail Maharashtra 635 (Khadiwale 262, Mundhe 75) by 338 runs
Scorecard

Nightwatchman Harshad Gadekar put up stubborn resistance and frustrated the Maharashtra bowlers by batting out the whole of third day, in the Ranji Trophy Group C game in Pune. Despite Gadekar's unbeaten 86 and his 151-run partnership for the third wicket with Sagun Kamat though, Goa still had their backs to the wall, ending the day at 297 for 5, chasing Maharashtra's first-innings score of 635.

To read the full report, click here.