RANJI TROPHY: JALAJ SAXENA’s HISTORIC NINE-WICKET HAUL PUTS KERALA IN CONTROL
GROUP A
Jayant Yadav secured his second five-wicket haul of the match as Haryana clinched a commanding victory by an innings and 205 runs over Jharkhand, propelling themselves to the summit of the group A table.
Despite being made to follow on, Haryana faltered, getting dismissed for 185 despite Utkarsh Singh’s gritty half-century.
Murtuza Trunkwala’s resilient 86 has sparked a comeback for Maharashtra, although Vidarbha maintains a firm grip on the contest in Pune with a commanding 344-run lead in the first innings.
At stumps, Maharashtra stands at 187 for 3, still trailing by 157 runs.
Should Vidarbha secure a draw with the first innings lead, they will ascend to the top of the points table.
Meanwhile, Services notched their second consecutive win of the season, dismantling Manipur for a mere 70 runs in the second innings, clinching a comprehensive victory by an innings and 196 runs.
This triumph propels Services to the second spot on the points table.
Dharmendrasinh Jadeja’s impressive five-wicket haul dismantled Rajasthan for 257 in the first innings, enabling Saurashtra to secure a 71-run lead.
Later in the day, the experienced pair of Sheldon Jackson and Aarpit Vasavada solidified their team’s position with an unbeaten 100-run partnership for the fifth wicket.
As the penultimate day concluded, Saurashtra stood at 174 for 4, boasting a commanding 245-run lead.
GROUP B
Piyush Kumar Singh’s unbeaten 79 guided Bihar to stage a recovery after being asked to follow on.
Earlier in the day, Sarupam Purkayastha’s four-wicket haul had bundled out Bihar for 207 in their first innings.
However, Bihar showed improved resilience with the bat in the second innings, heading to stumps on 168 for 3, still trailing by 30 runs.
Despite Amandeep Khare’s valiant 143, Tushar Deshpande’s five-wicket haul ensured that Mumbai secured a slender one-run lead in the first innings.
Mumbai ended the day on 97 for 1 in their second innings.
Jalaj Saxena’s career-best figures of 9 for 68 helped Kerala maintain control against Bengal in Thiruvananthapuram.
Saxena’s outstanding performance, the fourth best in Ranji Trophy history, led to Bengal being bowled out for 180 in their first innings.
Kerala declared their second innings on 265 for 6, courtesy of half-centuries from Rohan Kunnummal, Sachin Baby, and Shreyas Gopal.
Chasing a daunting target, Bengal reached stumps at 77 for 2, still requiring 372 more runs to win.
Ricky Bhui’s 18th first-class century ensured Andhra retained control against Uttar Pradesh.
After securing a 63-run lead in the first innings, Andhra reached 271 for 5 by the end of the third day.
GROUP C
Half-centuries by Wriddhiman Saha (66) and Manishankar Murasingh (94) propelled Tripura to an 82-run lead in the first innings.
However, Chandigarh made a strong start in the second innings with an unbeaten 116-run partnership for the opening wicket.
In Chennai, S Ajith Ram’s five-wicket haul revived Tamil Nadu’s chances against Karnataka as the visitors were dismissed for 139 in the second innings.
Earlier in the day, Tamil Nadu, led by Vijaykumar Vyshak’s four-wicket haul, were bowled out for 151, conceding a substantial 215-run lead.
With a target of 355 runs for victory, Tamil Nadu ended the penultimate day at 36 for 1.
Priyajitsing Jadeja’s triple strike left Punjab struggling at 40 for 4, still requiring 371 runs to win.
Sunpreet Bagga’s 79 guided Gujarat to 290 for 8 after taking a 120-run first innings lead in Mohali.
Meanwhile, Darshan Misal’s four-wicket haul restricted Railways to 208 in the second innings before Suyash Prabhudessai’s unbeaten half-century provided a strong start to Goa’s run-chase.
Goa finished the day at 97 for 1, needing 213 more runs for victory.
GROUP D
In their pursuit of 377, Odisha stumbled to 17 for 2 after Uttarakhand declared their second innings on 203 for 8, with skipper Jiwanjot Singh notching his second half-century of the match.
Rajesh Mohanty and Biplab Samantray claimed three wickets each for Odisha.
Saransh Jain’s three-wicket haul restricted Baroda to 132 all out in the first innings before they were enforced to follow on.
However, Jyotsnil Singh and Shaswat Rawat’s half-centuries led a stronger fightback in the second innings as Baroda ended the day on 201 for 3.
Ayush Badoni’s century, along with half-centuries from Anuj Rawat and Yash Dhull, propelled Delhi’s resurgence in the contest against Himachal as they declared their second innings on 381 for 6.
Himachal, needing 327 runs for victory, finished the day at 31 for 1.
In a low-scoring encounter, Vanshaj Sharma’s five-wicket haul on debut guided Jammu & Kashmir to a thrilling 19-run victory over Puducherry, who were bowled out for just 67 runs in the fourth innings.
This victory propelled J&K to the third spot on the points table.
PLATE
Sedezhalie Rupero and Sumit Kumar’s valiant half-centuries proved futile as Tanay Thyagarajan’s six-wicket haul dismantled Nagaland for 188 in the second innings, securing Hyderabad a commanding victory by an innings and 68 runs.
Meanwhile, Kishan Lyngdoh’s unbeaten 53 steered Meghalaya to a six-wicket triumph over Mizoram.
Chasing a target of 156 runs, the fifth-wicket partnership added 81 runs, guiding Meghalaya to victory.
They will now face Hyderabad in the Plate final.
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