Twin tons help UP stage recovery; Raina fails

Counter-attacking centuries from rookie Upendra Yadav and allrounder Saurabh Kumar helped Uttar Pradesh stage a remarkable recovery after being reduced to 74 for 6 before lunch on the first day against Assam in Guwahati. The seventh-wicket pair added 246 in just 38.1 overs to drive the innings, with UP eventually finishing with 349. Rishav Das and Rahul Hazarika played out a tricky new-ball burst towards close as Assam ended on 25 for no loss.

Suresh Raina, the UP captain, continued to flounder in his quest to regain lost form, falling for 6. Mohammad Saif and Rinku Singh, who rescued UP in the first innings in their previous outings against Delhi, managed just 4 and 18 respectively. Rajjakuddin Ahmed, the fast bowler, picked up three wickets while Dhiraj Goswami, Abu Nechim and Gokul Sharma, the captain, picked up two wickets apiece for Assam.

Ankit Bawne fell eight short of his second century this season and 18th overall, as Maharashtra overcame an early wobble to end on 249 for 5 on an attritional opening day against Railways in Pune. The innings was built on two vital partnerships: 71 for the fourth-wicket (between Bawne and Naushad Shaikh) and 95 for the fifth (Bawne and Motwani). Karaun Thakur, the medium pacer, who removed the in-form Rahul Tripathi earlier in the day, came back to dismiss Bawne minutes before stumps to even the scales for Railways.