Ranji live blog - Auqib Nabi takes five; Shahbaz, Majumdar revive Bengal

Hanuma Vihari got his second successive century for his new side Tripura, as he followed a 141 against Bengal with 143* against Assam. With the match in the balance when Tripura were 102 for 3 in Agartala, Vihari added 210 with wicketkeeper-batter Sentu Sarkar. Ayushman Malakar broke that partnership for Assam by having Sarkar caught for 94 in what turned out to be the last over of the day. It's stumps in Agartala, with Tripura at 316 for 4 in 84 overs, and with a big advantage.

Tamil Nadu's final pair of P Vidyuth and Sandeep Warrier bat for nearly 33 overs to add 79, the highest partnership of the day for the visitors against Andhra in Visakhapatnam. From 103 for 9 at one stage, Tamil Nadu end on 182 - not a big total, but one which could yet help them fight. It is left-arm spinner Saurabh Kumar who picks up his second wicket, and with that, finally provides Andhra with some relief. But the best performer with the ball was left-arm seamer Prithvi Raj, who bagged 4 for 46.

Here's Daya Sagar providing further updates:

"Jammu & Kashmir’s Auqib Nabi, who had already taken 19 wickets this season before facing Delhi today, is once again making the ball talk. With the old ball, Nabi produced a sensational spell that ripped through Delhi’s middle and lower orders.

He first dismissed Anuj Rawat, who edged an outswinger to Abdul Samad at first slip. In his very next over, Nabi struck twice in two balls, removing Hrithik Shokeen and Manan Bhardwaj. Shokeen nicked another outswinger to the wicketkeeper, while debutant Bhardwaj had no answer to Nabi’s lethal inswinging yorker that crashed into his pads.

Chasing a hat-trick, Nabi ended up bowling a full toss, which Simarjit Singh managed to block straight down the pitch. If he had claimed that wicket, it would have been Nabi's second hat-trick this domestic season. In fact, he had picked up four wickets in four balls in the Duleep Trophy for North Zone against East Zone.

Delhi, who were once comfortably placed at 182 for 4, collapsed dramatically to 195 for 8 by tea. The last four wickets fell within just 19 balls and 13 runs, with Nabi accounting for three of them."

Jay Gohil scored 84 - more than half of Saurashtra's total of 160 - in a one-man show for the visitors in Mangalapuram. Saurashtra had only 123 on the board when Gohil was dismissed. Saurashtra were 7 for 3 at one stage, before Gohil and Prerak Mankad added 69. It was Kerala's quick MD Nidheesh who starred with the ball, picking up his eighth first-class five-for and finishing with 6 for 20.

Musheer Khan started the season with scores of 0, 8 and 12. But he got back among the runs in the third match, against Rajasthan, having scored 49 and 63. Well set both times but falling short of a big score, Musheer smashes his first century of the season on Saturday after rescuing Mumbai from 35 for 3 - and then 73 for 4 - against Himachal Pradesh. At tea, Mumbai 217 for 4 in 61 overs, as Musheer's partnership with Siddhesh Lad reaches 144.

Bengal were 61 for 4 against Railways at the start of the 37th over, crawling and struggling to get the runs. New batter Shahbaz Ahmed arrived, and flicked a switch. Even Anustup Majumdar, the No. 5 batter, picked up pace. With 54 overs done, Bengal are 145 for 4, having piled up 84 runs in the last 18 overs. Majumdar is on 50 off 73 balls, while Shahbaz is on 51 in 60 deliveries.

Tamil Nadu were 103 for 9 in the 42nd over, when last batter Sandeep Warrier and No. 9 P Vidyuth joined hands. Eighteen overs later, they are still unbeaten as Tamil Nadu fight back and frustrate Andhra. They are 143 for 9 in 60 overs, with the last pair having added 40, the highest partnership of the innings so far.

Daya Sagar, in Delhi, has more:

"Delhi captain Ayush Badoni once again failed to convert a good start into a big score. After hitting a double century in the Duleep Trophy earlier this season, Badoni has been getting decent starts but has struggled to carry on and play a long innings. Last week, while representing India A against South Africa A, he scored 38 and 34, both times getting set before giving away his wicket.

A similar story unfolded against Jammu & Kashmir on Saturday. After Delhi lost three quick wickets in the first hour, Badoni tried to rebuild the innings along with Ayush Doseja, and went on to complete his half-century. However, soon after the start of the second session, he fell in disappointing fashion, playing across a straight delivery from left-arm spinner Vanshaj Sharma, and getting trapped on the pads.

Even during the first session, when Delhi needed stability, Badoni had attempted a few aerial shots that luckily landed in no man’s land. He also narrowly escaped being run-out once. It was another case of promise shown but not fulfilled, something Badoni will be eager to fix as the season progresses."

Odisha's Rajesh Mohanty and Tapas Das had reduced hosts Vidarbha to 6 for 3. The top three batters fell for 1, 0 and 2. But Dhruv Shorey, at No. 4, was joined by R Samarth, and their partnership has steadied Vidarbha. Shorey gets to his 24th first-class fifty by flicking Das between mid-on and midwicket. Vidarbha 72 for 3 in 40 overs, as Samarth bats time in getting to only 12 off his first 81 balls.

It's Neeraj Pandey reporting from the Green Park Stadium:

"The first session has belonged entirely to Uttar Pradesh, who went into lunch at 117 for no loss after a composed start against Nagaland. Openers Abhishek Goswami and Madhav Kaushik led the charge with half-centuries, displaying excellent temperament and control. While Abhishek was the aggressor, playing his shots with confidence, Madhav provided stability at the other end, anchoring the innings with calm assurance.

Nagaland had a golden opportunity to break through in the tenth over when Ronit More found the outside edge of Kaushik’s bat, but Yugandhar Singh at third slip put down a straightforward catch. Apart from that solitary chance, the bowlers found little assistance from the pitch, which has offered minimal movement or turn so far. In search of early breakthroughs, Nagaland even turned to spin within the first hour, with left-arm spinner Vino Zhimomi sending down three tidy overs."

Bengal were 27 for 3 when they lost Suraj Sindhu Jaiswal for 5. That came after debutant and opening batter Aditya Purohit (6) and stand-in captain Sudip Kumar Gharami (0) also fell early. After all that, senior batter Anustup Majumdar got a life even as Bengal are crawling in Surat.

Sarfaraz Khan and his younger brother Musheer Khan were rebuilding for Mumbai, who were 35 for 3 at one stage. They added 38 runs before Himachal Pradesh's Vaibhav Arora trapped Sarfaraz in front for a patient 16 off 57 balls. Mumbai 73 for 4 at the start of the 27th over, as Sarfaraz's season starts with just 111 runs at an average of 22.20.

Veteran spinner Jalaj Saxena grabs his second wicket, as Maharashtra have Karnataka at 82 for 2 after 23 overs. That brings comeback man and vice-captain Karun Nair at the crease, where he joins his captain Mayank Agarwal. The Karnataka captain has looked steady so far, and set for a good score.

Against Jharkhand, Tamil Nadu were 93 all out in the first innings, and 93 for 5 at one stage in the second.

Against Vidarbha, they were 73 for 3 and 99 for 4 in the first and second innings, respectively.

Against Andhra today, Tamil Nadu find themselves at 46 for 5 after electing to bat in Visakhapatnam.

There's no end to injuries for Rishabh Pant. While on the tour of England, he first hurt his finger while wicketkeeping, and then his foot while batting. The latter injury kept him out of action for a few months, and while playing for India A against South Africa A in Bengaluru today, Pant retires hurt after a blow to the helmet, the elbow and then the box. Shashank Kishore's live blog mentions that Pant's left forearm was strapped after being hit by Tshepo Moreki.

Right-arm medium-pacer MD Nidheesh has left Saurashtra in trouble in Mangalapuram, where Kerala opted to bowl. After bagging Harvik Desai for a duck in the first over, Nidheesh has Chirag Jani for 5 and Arpit Vasavada without scoring back-to-back to end the seventh over. Nidheesh missed out on a hat-trick, but left Saurashtra at 7 for 3. Jay Gohil and Prerak Mankad, though, have started to rebuild, with Saurashtra 35 for 3 in 14 overs.

Vipin Sharma struck for Himachal Pradesh in the second over at the BKC Ground in Mumbai to get Ayush Mhatre for 9 in eight balls. Arpit Guleria then got Ajinkya Rahane for 2 to end the seventh over. Mumbai 26 for 2 in seven overs, with Musheer Khan, who opened the innings, batting at one end.

Anvay Dravid, the son of former India captain and coach of Rahul Dravid, smashed a 37-ball fifty for Team C in the ongoing Under-19 One Day Challenger Trophy yesterday. He ended on 65* in 45 deliveries, as Team C posted 360 in 50 overs, and beat Team B by 198 runs.

Here's Daya Sagar reporting from Delhi:

"Hello and good morning from a pleasant, sunny day here at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. The stage is set for another exciting day of cricket as Jammu & Kashmir have won the toss and elected to bowl first against Delhi, hoping to make the most of the morning moisture and the cool breeze.

All eyes will be on Aquib Nabi, who has been in red-hot form with the ball. For Delhi, captain Ayush Badoni returns to lead the team after missing out on the second unofficial Test against South Africa A.

Left-arm spinner Manan Bhardwaj is making his first-class debut for them following two impressive seasons in the Col CK Nayudu Under-23 tournament. Interestingly, it was Bhardwaj who was hit for six consecutive sixes by Priyansh Arya, who had also made his first-class debut earlier this season, during the Delhi Premier League 2024. Arya, though, misses out on this game as he has been selected for the Rising Stars Asia Cup."

No Mohammed Shami, Abhimanyu Easwaran and Abishek Porel for Bengal in Round 4, as they opt to bat against Railways in Surat. Sudip Kumar Gharami is leading Bengal, who have top-order batter Aditya Purohit making his debut in first-class cricket.

While Shami may have been rested after three successive rounds of matches, Easwaran is representing India A against South Africa A in the second unofficial Test in Bengaluru. Porel, meanwhile, has been named in India's squad for the Rising Stars Asia Cup starting on November 14 in Doha.

In Visakhapatnam, it's Andhra hosting Tamil Nadu in a Group A fixture. While Andhra beat Odisha by an innings in round three, Tamil Nadu have started with two losses in their first three games. As a result, Andhra are currently third on the points table, while Tamil Nadu are sixth. The visitors won the toss and opted to bat in Visakhapatnam, as N Jagadeesan and Vimal Khumar look to lay a good platform. After suffering an injury during training and missing the first four-dayer against South Africa A, Jagadeesan has recovered in time for the fourth round of the Ranji Trophy. Shahrukh Khan has been dropped after low returns, with B Sachin, who has recovered after a bout of chickenpox, replacing him.

Further down, in the southern corner of India, Kerala play Saurashtra in Mangalapuram. They are both in the second half of the points table, with neither side having won a single game so far. Saurashtra, though, have five points from three draws compared to Kerala's two points after two draws and a defeat.