Report

Railways rout Jammu & Kashmir

A round-up of the third day's play of the first-round matches of the Ranji Trophy Plate League, 2007-08

Cricinfo staff
05-Nov-2007
Railways 405 (Sharma 120, Beigh 5-115) beat Jammu & Kashmir 194 (Ian Dev 62, Yadav 4-22) and 123 (Sarabjit 44*, Bangar 4-29) by an innings and 88 runs
Scorecard
Railways extended their overnight lead of 113 to 211 before their bowlers ran through Jammu & Kashmir in just under 46 overs, completing a comprehensive win on day three in Delhi. J&K could only muster 123 in their second innings as Sanjay Bangar picked up the last four wickets in 8.5 overs.
Resuming on 307 for 7, Railways reached 405 with No. 7 Karan Sharma, unbeaten overnight on 68, going on to score a century on first-class debut. Sharma was involved in a 103-run stand for the eighth wicket with Harvinder Singh (38). Sharma was the last to fall, but the 211-run deficit was too much for J&K, handing Railways a well-earned victory and six points.
Haryana 246 (Sumeet 52, Jakati 6-52) and 6 for 1 need another 241 runs to beat Goa 271 and 221 (Kamat 60, Ratra 86, Mishra 6-75)
Scorecard
After having conceded a first-innings lead to Goa, Haryana were left with a chance for victory, needing another 241 runs with nine wickets in hand.
Starting the third day 67 runs behind Goa's first-innings 271, Haryana were bowled out for 246, Shadab Jakati finishing with 6 for 52 from 29.2 overs. Goa got off to a shaky start, losing three wickets with only 30 on the board as Joginder Sharma struck twice.
Opener Sagun Kamat made 60, but it was a fighting 86 by Ajay Ratra, the former Indian wicketkeeper, that enabled the home team to reach 221. Ratra was involved in a 32-run last-wicket partnership with Harshad Gadekar as Amit Mishra, Haryana's strike bowler, took 6 for 75. Haryana, set a target of 247 - one more than their first-innings total, lost a wicket before stumps, Jakati making the breakthrough.
Assam 189 and 15 for 2 need another 392 runs to beat Gujarat 228 and 367 for 4 dec (Modi 151*, Niraj 124)
Scorecard
Gujarat looked well-placed for a win in Ahmedabad, having reduced Assam to 15 to 2 after having set them a target 407.
Nilesh Modi and Niraj Patel amassed 215 runs for the third wicket as Gujarat more than consolidated on the 39-run lead they had gained after bowling out Assam for 189. Niraj hit 15 boundaries in his 192-ball stint for his 124, while Modi was more circumspect, his unbeaten 152 coming at less than a run every two balls. Niraj fell with the score on 333, and his side declared once the lead was extended beyond 400. The hosts had the added bonus of two wickets in the 15 overs they bowled, with Siddharth Trivedi and Nehal Raval bagging one apiece.
Vidarbha 114 and 42 for 0 require another 346 to beat Kerala 169 and 332 for 8 dec (Sarma 79, Nair 72, Shitoot 4-38)
Scorecard
Vidarbha were 42 for no loss at close, chasing a target of 388 against Kerala in Nagpur. Kerala, who started the day on 92 for 0 - a lead of 147 runs - declared after adding 240 in 71 overs on day three. Opener Sambasiva Sarma top-scored with 79, with Sreekumar Nair, Padmanabhan Prasanth and Sony Cheruvathur chipping in with 72, 50 and 49 repsectively. Prasanth and Nair added 93 for the sixth wicket, with Kerala declaring shortly after the fall of the eighth wicket. Harshal Shitoot, the offspinner, impressed with 4 for 38 from 15 overs.
Vidarbha's openers played out 16 overs till stumps, ensuring their side had ten wickets in hand to either force a draw or an improbable win on the fourth and final day.
Madhya Pradesh 223 and 165 for 5 (Bakshi 44*, Rao 3-42) lead Jharkhand 139 (Vardhan 47, Rajan 4-51) by 249 runs
Scorecard
Madhya Pradesh skittled out Jharkhand for 139, gaining a first-innings lead of 84, and then scored 165 for the loss of five wickets at stumps on the third day in Jamshedpur.
Jharkhand, resuming at 83 for 5, managed a further 56 as the last five wickets fell within the first 24 overs of the day. Anand Rajan bagged 4 for 51, adding two scalps to the couple he picked up on Sunday. MP lost wickets at regular intervals as they looked to build on their lead, but ended on 165 for 5, with a more than handy advantage of 249. Shankar Rao was the pick of the bowlers for Jharkhand, with three wickets in his 16 overs.
Services 102 and 308 for 7 (Yashpal 94*, Jain 3-66) lead Tripura 198 by 222 runs
Scorecard
Services, who conceded the first-innings lead against Tripura, looked poised to set the home team a challenging target on the final day of the match in Agartala. Yashpal Sharma scored an unbeaten 94 as Services, overnight on 112 for 2, reached 308 for 7, an overall lead of 222 runs. For Tripura, Vineet Jain took 3 for 66.