Vinay six-for sets up Karnataka win

Karnataka 408 (Gopal 145, Gautam 63, Dinda 7-87) and 71 for 1 (Uthappa 54) beat Bengal 251 (Goswami 68, Chatterjee 57, Aravind 3-31, Vinay Kumar 3-56) and 227 (Chatterjee 59, Shukla 57, Vinay Kumar 6-34) by nine wickets
Scorecard

R Vinay Kumar's 6 for 34 on the final day paved the way for Karnataka's nine-wicket win over Bengal in Kolkata. Vinay's six-wicket haul dismissed Bengal for 227 in their second innings, setting Karnataka a target of 71, which they overcame within 11 overs, with Robin Uthappa contributing a swift 54.

Bengal were asked to follow-on on the third day after conceding a 157-run lead, and they began the day at 46 for 1. Overnight batsman Arindam Das fell early and the side suffered another setback when Chatterjee was dismissed for 59, his second fifty of the match. Shreevats Goswami and Laxmi Shukla kept Karnataka at bay with a 72-run stand, with Shukla chipping in with a brisk fifty. However, both batsmen were dismissed in successive overs as Bengal lost their last six wickets for 29, of which Vinay picked up five.

Uthappa bludgeoned his way to a 36-ball 54, smacking 10 fours and a six, but fell with Karnataka just two runs short of the target.

Vital contributions from the lower middle order helped Uttar Pradesh overhaul a target of 180 with four wickets to spare against Madhya Pradesh. The victory gave UP six vital points in an away game.

Parvinder Singh and night-watchman Amit Mishra started the last day at 82 for 4. Parvinder was the lone specialist batsman remaining but, with MP missing Ishwar Pandey due to injury, Mishra displayed an attacking mindset and went after seamers Puneet Datey and Avesh Khan.

By the time Mishra edged Avesh to the keeper Zafar Ali, UP had cruised to 123. Datey soon gave MP a ray of hope by dismissing Parvinder soon after the drinks break. UP still needed 32 but Piyush Chawla ensured victory for his side through an unbeaten 35-run partnership with wicketkeeper Eklavya Dwivedi for the seventh wicket.

Chawla did the bulk of the scoring during the stand, smashing three fours and a six to help UP complete the formalities just before lunch.

The Railways seam trio of Anureet Singh, Krishnakant Upadhyay and Ranjitkumar Mali skittled Mumbai out for 101, giving Railways three points based on the first-innings lead in the drawn game in Delhi.

Mumbai began the final day of a rain-affected match at a shaky 24 for 3 and the lack of partnerships meant their innings ended after only 43 overs. Anureet finished with 4 for 35, while Mali took 3 for 27 and Upadhyay chipped in with 2 for 37.

With the first-innings lead of 141 established, Railways ended the day at 136 for 4 in the second innings.