Ranji round 4, day 2: Iyer's double-century gives Mumbai control

Cheteshwar Pujara managed just 14 as Saurashtra end day 2 on 201/4 in reply to Jharkhand's 306 in Ranchi.

Hanuma Vihari is unbeaten on 15 as Andhra have a mountain to climb against Uttarakhand in Vizianagaram.

Shreyas Iyer hit his second successive first-class century, which he converted into a third double-ton, has put Mumbai in a commanding position against Odisha in Mumbai.

The soon-to-retire Wriddhiman Saha managed just 6 in Bengal's 301 before they hit back against Karnataka in Bengaluru. Mayank Agarwal managed just 17 while Manish Pandey bagged a two-ball duck.

For a while now, Haryana have relied heavily on Amit Mishra, Jayant Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal in the spin department. Now, with Mishra at the sunset of his career and Chahal not always a first-class regular, Haryana have discovered a gem in left-arm spinner Nishant Sindhu.

Sindhu is classical and old-school, like Manav Suthar. Bowls with a lovely loop, gets it to dip and can make the ball "hang" - something old-timers often speak of when they talk about the art of left-arm spin.

An under-19 World Cup winner in 2022, Sindhu has also broken into the IPL ranks with Chennai Super Kings. Last year, he was among the highest wicket-taker at the Emerging teams' Asia Cup: his 11 wickets in five innings coming at an average of under 12.

So far this season, he hadn't made much of an impact with the ball. But on a surface with some assistance, he's come into his own. First, his six-for helped Haryana come storming back after they were bundled out for 114 in the first innings. Defending 217 for their fourth win in four games, he has now picked up two wickets, both in the same over, as Punjab end the second day on 73/3, needing another 144.

It's headed for a tight finish tomorrow in Lahli.

Nagaland 186/2 (Nischal 101*) trail Sikkim 192 (Thapa 57, Borah 5-31) by 6 runs in Sovima

Mizoram 83/5 (Jangle 25, Misal 2-25) trail Goa 555/9d (Kauthankar 250, Jangra 3-167, Cariappa 3-172) by 472 runs in Ahmedabad

Manipur 266 and 96/3 (Karnajit 60, Abo 2-17) lead Arunachal 115 (Ajay Singh 6-14) by 247 runs in Ahmedabad

PS: The scorecards are not LIVE and are updated from time to time

The spotlight's been on him as much for his runs in the Plate League as it has for his family name (he's the son of famous Bollywood director & producer Vidhu Vinod Chopra).

He's made scores of 51, 29, 110, 238* and 218 until now. But if you needed proof that he's human, here goes: he's out for 1 as Mizoram are tottering at 55/4 in response to Goa's 555/9 declared.

On what seems a rank turner in Lahli, you've got to wonder if Himanshu Rana has played the innings of the match. His 68 amid a proper collapse, coupled with handy lower-order runs from Jayant Yadav and Anshul Kamboj (29 apiece) has helped Haryana set Punjab a target of 218. The contribution of Ankit Kumar, who made 38, can't be understated either.

Haryana are currently table toppers in Group C with two outrights in three games. Another win will place them handsomely for the knockouts. Last season's Vijay Hazare champions have turned it around quite superbly so far in this Ranji Trophy.

Chandigarh may seem like surprise group toppers at the end of three rounds, but a look at their performances over the season will tell you they're fully worthy of that honour.

On the opening day, despite Yash Dhull's superb 121, Chandigarh managed to restrict Delhi to 276. And with the surface fresh and the ball moving around, they've got to within 25 runs of Delhi's total with four wickets still standing.

It seems as if this will be an outright game, so the first-innings lead is unlikely to have a massive difference, unless Chandigarh can get ahead by 60-70 at the very minimum.

It all started with Deepak Hooda, the captain, wanting to resign because of what he felt were arbitrary changes to the squad at the n'th hour, just before the game against Hyderabad.

It started with the selectors dropping Kunal Singh Rathore, the wicketkeeper, from the squad altogether. Hooda was aghast at this call and asked the selectors to reinstate him for the sake of continuity. Finally, his demand was adhered to as Rathore took the field.

As such, the format and the travel can take its toll. To add to it, Hooda & co have had to deal with selection and team management issues. On the field, Rajasthan have been run ragged by Hyderabad, a team that was playing in the Plate Division last year.

Hyderabad have now batted for close to 140 overs to make 400. Which makes Rajasthan's task of trying to force an outright result that much tougher on what seems a dead surface at Sawai Man Singh Stadium.

To make matters worse, Rathore has had to go off the field with an injury that has required medical attention.

They were 201 for 3 after tea, with Anustup Majumdar batting imperiously. Then they lost a wicket, of Anustup, possibly to a wrong call. It triggered a massive slide thereafter as Bengal lost their remaining seven wickets for just 100.

Vishal Dikshit from BKC: And Mumbai declare on 602 for 4! After Iyer's double, the star of the day so far has been No. 6 Suryansh Shedge, smashing an unbeaten 79 off just 36 balls.

While Siddhesh Lad was progressing patiently at one end, Shedge hammered six sixes (along with seven fours) - all in the 'V' down the ground, the best of which was the last shot of the innings when he dispatched the ball on the roof of the MCA Pavilion above the dressing rooms. Lad ends on 169*, his highest first-class score in his 70th game.

Even though conditions look great for batting, Mumbai will hope that have batted big and only once here. They have the time to twice bowl out an opposition which has crossed 200 only once this season in four attempts.

Elsewhere in Thumba....

A key driver in MP's renaissance, Shubham Sharma, now captain, continues to enjoy a glorious run. Sure it's Bihar, not the best attack by any means, but runs are the currency a player is always judged by. His 240 has put MP in a supreme position to get full points in Patna. This is his second century of the season, to go with the unbeaten 142 he made against Karnataka in the Ranji opener in Indore.

Shubham's fourth-wicket stand of 366 with Venkatesh Iyer has completely ground Bihar to dust. More than the runs, the manner in which they've bad them - at over five an over - has been the hallmark of the partnership. MP are 592 for 8, and have enough time to get 20 wickets.

Himanshu Agrawal from Chinnaswamy: Karnataka's opening batter Nikin Jose has been ruled out of the remainder of the Bengal fixture due to concussion. He was hit on the head while fielding on day one, and it was officially confirmed on the second morning that he will not be taking any further part in the game.

Karnataka named Kishan Bedare as Jose's replacement for the rest of the match. Bedare has played only three first-class games, all of which came in the previous domestic season in 2023-24. He had scored 62 and 42 in of those matches, against Tripura, as Karnataka successfully defended 192 in Agartala.

Vishal Dikshit reports from BKC that Shreyas Iyer is gone. "Pressing forward against the turning ball and stumped off Harshit Rathod." Iyer made 233. Mumbai have blasted past 500 too. Odisha with their backs to the wall.

Meanwhile, in Lahli, known once for being a seam bowler's paradise, 19 of the 22 wickets to have fallen by lunch on day 2 have fallen to spin. Haryana, who were shot out for 114, have bounced back nicely to restrict Punjab's lead to 27, with left-arm spinning allrounder Nishant Sindhu picking up six wickets. In their second dig, Haryana have wiped out the deficit and are 33 ahead, but have lost three wickets.

Vishal Dikshit has made his way to the BKC in time to watch Iyer's third first-class double ton.

"What a way to get there too - he lofted Sunil Kumar Roul handsomely over the covers to waltz from 187 to 193 and then on 197 he smashes Debabrata Pradhan down the ground with his bat straight as an arrow to reach 201. An attacking double off 201 balls."

His previous two double-hundreds were also in this city - one against Punjab at Wankhede in 2015 and another for India A against Australia at CCI in early 2017.

During that knock against the Australians, Iyer revealed he received a lot of chirp. "I was given a mouthful by them," he told me back in 2018. David Warner came up and said, 'Now show us what you've got. I can't see anything in your game.'

"Since I was playing against a senior team, it wouldn't have been great for me to reply. You can't just sledge guys like Warner, who have achieved a lot for their country. I was thinking 'Let me get to a total, after that I can talk.' I like to talk. If someone sledges me, I like to give it back.

"The most satisfying thing was that I hit a six off my first ball. I wasn't scared of the bowlers or the consequences. From there, I got into my stride. Nathan Lyon was a bit frustrated that I was stepping out and hitting him easily.

"He's an amazing bowler, but that day was my day. He was chirping and I gave it back. It was good, it was challenging. Even in the tri-series final in South Africa, I was just sledging around with all the 11 players in the final. They were shocked. Even when I was taking a single, I was sledging them in the latter half. All of them kept quiet."

At the Chinnaswamy, Karnataka have struck twice in the first half hour to leave Bengal wobbly at 254 for 7. Both overnight batters, the well-set Shahbaz Ahmed and Wriddhiman Saha, have been dismissed. A wicket each for V Koushik, who is one short of a third five-for in first-class cricket, and Abhilash Shetty, the debutant left-arm seamer who now has two scalps.

The game is massively important for both sides, more so for Bengal since each of their three games previously have been weather affected. They're yet to notch up a win this season and run the risk of going into the second half of the competition with too much to do if they're to make the knockouts.

In Guwahati, Tamil Nadu's eighth-wicket pair of Mohammed Ali and Sonu Yadav have put together an unbroken half-century stand to help them inch closer to the 350-run mark.