Punjab thrash Andhra in low-scorer

Punjab completed an easy seven-wicket win against Andhra within two days in their Group B match in Patiala, to move to second in the points table. In a low-scoring encounter, 16 wickets fell on the second day as Punjab romped to a target of 67 in the 20th over, with Mandeep Singh top-scoring with an unbeaten 22.

Punjab were bowled out for 147 after beginning the day on 128 for 7, with Prasanth Kumar taking two of the three wickets to finish with figures of 4 for 14. Andhra began their second innings in sprightly fashion, their openers - Srikar Bharat (39) and Prasanth (29) - adding 53 to cut the deficit to 14.

However, Rajwinder Singh and Sarabjit Ladda chipped away at the top order as Andhra struggled to form substantial partnerships; the last six wickets contributed just 24 runs. Gurkeerat Singh followed his four-for in the first innings with a five-wicket haul in the second, taking the last five wickets to fall to restrict Andhra's lead to 66.

Tamil Nadu dominated the second day and took control of their Group B game against Railways in Delhi. Tamil Nadu added 40 runs to their overnight score of 288 for 6 before being bowled out for 328, Baba Indrajith scoring 30 of those to end with a career-best 151. Anureet Singh added two wickets to his tally to end with figures of 5 for 104.

Aswin Crist threw Railways' top order in disarray with three quick wickets to reduce them to 20 for 3. However, opener V Cheluvaraj and Arindam Ghosh (48) offered resistance with a 104-run stand before another clump of wickets towards the end of the day left Railways tottering at 129 for 7 at stumps, with J Kousik picking up 3 for 7 in six overs. Cheluvaraj remained unbeaten with a 158-ball 63.

Five-wicket hauls from Praveen Kumar and Saurabh Kumar put Uttar Pradesh into the ascendancy against Gujarat in Valsad, taking a 336-run lead by stumps on the second day. The pair helped bowl Gujarat out for 100 in 31.4 overs after Uttar Pradesh were dismissed for 273 in their first innings.

Captain Parthiv Patel - one of only three batsmen to reach double figures - top-scored with a handy 39 but couldn't prevent a match-turning collapse. Gujarat gave themselves a slim chance by taking seven wickets in the second innings but Uttar Pradesh scored 163, stretching the lead to 336. Umang Sharma struck six fours and a six in his 66 and also formed a 66-run third-wicket partnership with Ali Murtaza. Axar Patel picked up four wickets in his 21 overs.

Deepak Hooda's quick-fire fifty highlighted another attritional day and gave Baroda a slight edge in their match against Madhya Pradesh in Vadodara. Aditya Waghmode also contributed with a patient 64 as Baroda finished the second day at 188 for 4, 81 behind Madhya Pradesh's first-innings total of 269. Waghmode combined with Hooda and Yusuf Pathan (27*) in stands worth 80 and 49 respectively to take Baroda closer to a first-innings lead.

Earlier in the day, handy lower-order contributions took Madhya Pradesh to 269 after beginning the day at 198 for 7. Ishwar Pandey struck three sixes and two fours in his 16-ball 34 before he was the last man out off the bowling of Swapnil Singh, who finished with 4 for 61.