Nehra leads Delhi fightback

Delhi 299 and 165 for 3 (Chopra 68*) lead Uttar Pradesh 287 (Srivastava 73, Kumar 66, Chawla 61, Nehra 5-105) by 177 runs
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Ashish Nehra's five-wicket haul engineered a fine Delhi fightback, allowing them to gain a slender first-innings lead on the third day at the Feroz Shah Kotla. Chasing 300 for a first-innings lead, UP were comfortably placed at 209 for 5 when Nehra got past Tanmay Srivastava's defences. He went on to scalp two more wickets as UP collapsed to 287. Aakash Chopra continued his fine form with yet another half-century as Delhi ended the day on a commanding 177-run lead, all but assured of gaining two points from the encounter.

Haryana 258 (Rawat 65) and 34 for 5 need another 332 runs to beat Karnataka 371 and 252 for 4 dec (Uthappa 108, Rowland 96)
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A blistering 211-run opening stand, off just 31.4 overs, steered Karnataka to the threshold of their first win this season. After gaining a 113-run first-innings lead, with Haryana all out for 258, Karnataka were boosted by Robin Uthappa and Barrington Rowland. Uthappa smashed 13 fours and two sixes in a belligerent 103-ball knock while Rowland matched him with a similarly-paced 96. Haryana were always going to struggle chasing 366 and the loss of five quick wickets pushed them closer to a heavy defeat.

Mumbai 206 for 2 (Thakkar 108*) trail Bengal 578 for 7 dec (Tiwary 210*) by 372 runs
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A patient century from Bhavin Thakkar led Mumbai's spirited reply on the third day at Eden Gardens. Facing a daunting Bengal first-innings score of 578, thanks largely to Manoj Tiwary's maiden double-century, Mumbai steadily ploughed to 296 for 2 at stumps, with Thakker unbeaten on a 251-ball 108. Mumbai's reply got off to an inauspicious start, when Ranadeb Bose nailed a wicket in the very first over of the innings, but Thakkar shared two vital partnerships - 132 with Vinayak Mane and 73 with his captain Amol Muzumdar - to put the innings back on track.

Gujarat 208 and 86 for 1 trail Punjab 503 for 9 dec (Ricky 144, Gupta 121*) by 209 runs
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Punjab continued their dominance over Gujarat at Mohali, declaring on a mammoth 503 for 9 and nailing one wicket before stumps were drawn. Ravneet Ricky, who made a fine century yesterday, fell for 144 but Gaurav Gupta carried on the good work with a fine hundred. Gupta, who struck 11 fours in his 245-ball knock, shepherded the tail, helping Punjab cross the 500-run mark. Ishan Malhatra and Gagandeep Singh chipped in with 20s before Gagandeep got into the act with the ball, removing Akash Christian before the day was out.

Rajasthan 347 for 8 (Khoda 107, Panjak 74, Ojha 5-113) trail Hyderabad385 by 38 runs
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Gagan Khoda steered Rajasthan towards first-innings honours but Pragyan Ojha, the chinaman bowler, helped Hyderabad fight back in an engrossing battle at Jaipur. Khoda's 18th first-class hundred was composed in 225 deliveries but his dismissal left Rajasthan struggling at 213 for 7, still 172 adrift of Hyderabad's first-innings score. But Pankaj Singh, with a boundary-filled 74, led a fiery lower-order assault and along with Kabir Ali, the overseas import, lifted them to within 39 runs of gaining the lead. Ojha, in a marathon 56 overs, ended with his second five-wicket haul in as many games.

Saurashtra 255 (Pujara 63*, Kotak 61, Jogiyani 58) and 36 for 2 trail Baroda 406 by 115 runs
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An accurate spell from Rajesh Pawar, Baroda's left-arm spinner, forced Saurashtra to follow-on on the third day at Rajkot. Faced with an uphill task of chasing 406, Saurashtra fell apart after a promising start from the top order. Sagar Jogiyani, Shitanshu Kotak and Cheteshwar Pujara managed patient half-centuries but loss of regular wickets hurt them. Pawar, conceding just 42 runs in his 36 overs and sending down as many as 20 maidens, kept up the pressure and played a role in skittling the tail. Saurashtra were in trouble while following on as well, ending the day on a precarious 36 for 2.

Andhra 155 and 79 for 1 trail Tamil Nadu 474 for 9 dec by 240 runs
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A combined bowling effort from Tamil Nadu restricted Andhra to just 155 in their first innings, forcing them to follow-on on the third day at Chennai. Faced with a challenging 474, Andhra came apart with only one of the batsmen - Chandramouli Prasad - managing to cross 30. Vijaykumar Yo Mahesh and Rajamani Jesuraj, Tamil Nadu's opening bowlers, shared five wickets between them. Andhra were further pegged back in their second innings, ending the day on 79 for 1.