Attavar, Dhandapani prop up TNCA President's XI

Badri Attavar (136) and D Dhandapani (53) with an unfinished sixth wicket partnership of 133 runs off 33.2 overs saw TNCA President's XI end the first day of their Buchi Babu all India invitation cricket tournament prequarterfinal against ONGC at the AC Tech grounds in Chennai on a happy note. After being 163 for five shortly before tea, the State's second string were able to post a much more healthy looking 296 for five from 95 overs at stumps.

Winning the toss, TNCA President's XI were given a fair start with openers Ravindran John (24) and SP Lakshmi Kumar (33) putting on 49 runs off 14 overs. Satyajit Medappa (12) did not last long but Attavar and Sunil Viswanathan (25) got the home team going again with a steady fourth wicket partnership of 56 runs off 24.2 overs. The fall of Viswanathan and R Prasanna (1) in successive overs however saw the TNCA President's XI in a rather shaky position. But they need not have worried. For Attavar and Dhandapani then came together for their rescue act. Attavar played the anchor role to perfection and by stumps he had batted 333 minutes, faced 249 balls and hit 17 fours. Dhandapani, matching Attavar in run production, has so far batted 140 minutes for his 53. He has dispatched nine of the 102 balls he has faced to the ropes.

The varied ONGC attack made little impression. Virender Sehwag picked up the wickets of Medappa and Viswanathan for 50 runs but he bowled only 14 overs. Rahul Sanghvi sent down 25 overs and took the wickets of Lakshmi Kumar and Prasanna for 74 runs while Amit Bhandari went wicketless despite bowling 18 overs.