All posts by h716a5.icu

The Uttar Pradesh one-day squad for the Vijay Hazare Trophy includes former India captain Mohammad Azharuddin’s son Mohammad Asaduddin

ESPNcricinfo staff31-Oct-2014The Uttar Pradesh one-day squad for the Vijay Hazare Trophy includes former India captain Mohammad Azharuddin’s son Mohammad Asaduddin. The squad, which was announced on Friday, will be led by Piyush Chawla.Asaduddin, also known as Abbas, was reportedly picked after appearing for trials at the state team’s nets only last week. He is a left-hander, and was a part of the Hyderabad Under-22 squad in 2010. He is also believed to have appeared for trials for various IPL franchises without much success. The UP squad also includes 19-year-old left-arm chinaman bowler Kuldeep Yadav, who is yet to make a List A debut.The Vijay Hazare Trophy will be held between November 6 and November 25 and UP will begin the tournament with a Central Zone game against Railways in Nagpur on November 7.UP squad: Piyush Chawla (capt), Akshdeep Nath, Prashant Gupta, Praveen Kumar, RP Singh, Ali Murtaza, Mukul Dagar, Eklavya Dwivedi (wk), Amit Mishra, Parvinder Singh, Ankit Rajpoot, Tanmay Srivastava, Kuldeep Yadav, Umang Sharma, Mohammed Asaduddin, Imtiaz Ahmed, Dipendra Pandit, Israr Azim Khan

Royal Challengers Bangalore finally got their first away win of the season, beating bottom-placed Pune Warriors by 17 runs

The Report by Kanishkaa Balachandran02-May-2013
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsAB de Villiers’ daredevilry made the difference•BCCIRoyal Challengers Bangalore finally got their first away win of the season, beating bottom-placed Pune Warriors by 17 runs. The margin of victory suggested a comprehensive win, but Royal Challengers were run close by Robin Uthappa, who showed his potential with a blazing fifty which gave Warriors hope of chasing a tall 188. AB de Villiers was at his innovative best with the bat, smashing an unbeaten 50 off 23 balls to launch Royal Challengers past 180. His blows were the difference in the end.De Villiers’ assault helped Royal Challengers ransack 68 off the last five overs. Warriors needed 66 off the last five overs, but with a set Uthappa at the crease, Royal Challengers couldn’t afford to relax. Angelo Mathews too gave the visitors a scare with his cameo, but his untimely departure only piled further pressure on Uthappa. Uthappa’s form was good news for Warriors, but had he received better support, the result could have been different.The pitch at Pune has been one of the slower ones in the IPL and one that was going to test the batsmen more than the one in Bangalore when the teams last met. Chris Gayle found out the hard way early in his innings when he found the spinners hard to get away. It was a clever ploy by Warriors to take the pace off the ball, giving Ajantha Mendis the new ball and bringing in the part-timer T Suman. A repressed Gayle plodded to 15 off 19 balls before lofting Suman over the sightscreen for a six. It was hardly a sign of things to come as he tried to repeat that shot the following the ball and miscued it to deep extra cover, falling for a sluggish run-a-ball 21.Since there was no blazing launchpad by Gayle for a change, it was unusual watching Royal Challengers scrap to 59 after nine overs. Saurabh Tiwary and Virat Kohli gave the innings some impetus with a rousing stand of 63. Tiwary, who has batted in the middle order, had requested to go up the order and he justified his promotion with a half-century.The most decisive phase in the match came in the final over. De Villiers was on 24 off 17 balls when Ashok Dinda – not the most reliable death bowler – ran in. De Villiers moved across his stumps and smoked a full delivery outside off stump to deep midwicket for a flat six. The second was smashed over the bowler’s head for four, the third over long-off for six, the fourth reverse-swept to third man and the fifth scooped over short fine leg. De Villiers had raced to 50 off 23 by the end of the over, rousing Royal Challengers and demoralising the Warriors before the chase began.Warriors needed a pacy start but they too found the going difficult early on, moving to 49 for 2 after eight overs. Yuvraj Singh gave the innings a push with two exquisite sixes and his confidence began to rub off on Uthappa, who was starting to peak when he launched Muttiah Muralitharan over the sightscreenRoyal Challengers bounced back with two wickets in an over from Vinay, but Uthappa’s was the wicket they needed. The equation narrowed after one over when Uthappa and Mathews targeted the most experienced of the lot, Muralitharan, smashing three clean sixes in one over. Forty-five off 24 was achievable, but Vinay provided some relief to the visitors when he had Mathews caught at backward point. Uthappa’s heroics ended the following over when he top edged Murali Kartik to point. The chase was all but over when he walked back.

The BCCI held a crucial working committee meeting on Sunday to discuss the IPL spot-fixing controversy

ESPNcricinfo staff19-May-2013

Track who was sold to whom at the 2013 IPL auction

ESPNcricinfo staff03-Feb-2013BoughtRicky Ponting – $400,000 to Mumbai Indians (base price $400,000)
RP Singh – $400,000 to Royal Challengers Bangalore (base price $100,000)
Johan Botha – $450,000 to Delhi Daredevils (base price $300,000)
Michael Clarke – $400,000 to Pune Warriors (base price $400,000)
Luke Pomersbach – $300,000 to Kings XI Punjab (base price $50,000)
Phillip Hughes – $100,000 to Mumbai Indians (base price $100,000)
James Faulkner – $400,000 to Rajasthan Royals (base price $100,000)
Glenn Maxwell – $1,000,000 to Mumbai Indians (base price $200,000)
Moises Henriques – $300,000 to Royal Challengers Bangalore (base price $100,000)
Abhishek Nayar – $675,000 to Pune Warriors (base price $100,000)
Thisara Perera – $675,000 to Sunrisers Hyderabad (base price $50,000)
Jesse Ryder – $260,000 to Delhi Daredevils (base price $100,000)
Darren Sammy – $425,000 to Sunrisers Hyderabad (base price $100,000)
Jaydev Unadkat – $525,000 to Royal Challengers Bangalore (base price $100,000)
Pankaj Singh – $150,000 to Royal Challengers Bangalore (base price $50,000)
Ravi Rampaul – $290,000 to Royal Challengers Bangalore (base price $50,000)
Manpreet Gony – $500,000 to Kings XI Punjab (base price $200,000)
Fidel Edwards – $210,000 to Rajasthan Royals (base price $100,000)
Sudeep Tyagi – $100,000 to Sunrisers Hyderabad (base price $100,000)
Dirk Nannes – $600,000 to Chennai Super Kings (base price $200,000)
Nathan McCullum – $100,000 to Sunrisers Hyderabad (base price $100,000)
Ajantha Mendis – $725,000 to Pune Warriors (base price $50,000)
Jeevan Mendis – $50,000 to Delhi Daredevils (base price $50,000)
Chris Morris – $625,000 to Chennai Super Kings (base price $20,000)
Sachithra Senanayake – $625,000 to Kolkata Knight Riders (base price $50,000)
Christopher Barnwell – $50,000 to Royal Challengers Bangalore (base price 50,000)
Nathan Coulter-Nile – $450,000 to Mumbai Indians (base price $100,000)
Ben Laughlin – $20,000 to Chennai Super Kings (base price $20,000)
Kane Richardson – $700,000 to Pune Warriors (base price $100,000)
Jacob Oram – $50,000 to Mumbai Indians (base price $50,000)
Quinton de Kock – $20,000 to Sunrisers Hyderabad (base price $20,000)
Dan Christian – $100,000 to Royal Challengers Bangalore (base price $100,000)
Akila Dananjaya – $20,000 to Chennai Super Kings (base price $20,000)
Clint McKay – $100,000 to Sunrisers Hyderabad (base price $100,000)
Jason Holder – $20,000 to Chennai Super Kings (base price $20,000)
Ryan McLaren – $50,000 to Kolkata Knight Riders (base pirce $50,000)
Kushal Perera – $20,000 to Rajasthan Royals (base price $20,000)
UnsoldAaron Finch – base price $200,000
Upul Tharanga – base price $100,000
Martin Guptill – base price $100,000
Darren Bravo – base price $100,000
Herschelle Gibbs – base price $200,000
Adam Voges – base price $100,000
Matthew Wade – base price $200,000
Tim Paine – base price $100,000
Matt Prior – base price $200,000
Kaushal Silva – base price $20,000
Prasanna Jayawardene – base price $50,000
Dane Vilas – base price $20,000
Denesh Ramdin – base price $50,000
Dinesh Chandimal – base price $100,000
Ravi Bopara – base price $100,000
James Hopes – base price $100,000
Vernon Philander – base price $100,000
Doug Bollinger – base price $200,000
Cameron Boyce – base price $20,000
Veerasammy Permaul – base price $20,000
Suraj Randiv – base price $50,000
Devendra Bishoo – base price $50,000
Steve O’Keefe – base price $100,000
Paul Harris – base price $20,000
Rangana Herath – base price $100,000
Sulieman Benn – base price $20,000
Aaron Phangiso – base price $20,000
Farveez Maharoof – base price $50,000
Scott Styris – base price $100,000
Ben Cutting – base price $100,000
Josh Hazlewood – base price $100,000
Travis Birt – base price $100,000
Henry Davids – base price $20,000
Ben Rohrer – base price $50,000
Rilee Rossouw – base price $20,000
Kevin O’Brien – base price $50,000
Rory Kleinveldt – base price $50,000

Paul Collingwood, Durham’s captain, has undergone surgery on a ruptured tendon in his right thumb but is expected to be fit for the start of the Championship season in April

ESPNcricinfo staff26-Feb-2013Paul Collingwood, Durham’s captain, has undergone surgery on a ruptured tendon in his right thumb but is expected to be fit for the start of the Championship season in April.The injury was sustained over the winter, although it was not operated on immediately, to allow the swelling time to settle down. Collingwood broke the same hand last season, causing him to miss the entire Friends Life t20, but he returned to lead Durham to four successive Championship wins and steer the club away from relegation.A club statement said: “Paul will have 10 days of complete rest and spend three weeks in a protective splint before commencing a rehabilitation programme which should see him fit for the start of the 2013 season.”Durham begin their first four-day match of the 2013 season against Somerset on April 10, with Collingwood due to commence his first full season as captain after succeeding Phil Mustard last July.

Somerset have appointed former wicketkeeper Steve Snell as their second XI coach and academy director

ESPNcricinfo staff13-Nov-2014Somerset have appointed former wicketkeeper Steve Snell as their second XI coach and academy director. He joins a new management team at Taunton, overseen by Matthew Maynard, and will help fill the gap left by the departures of Andy Hurry and Dave Houghton.Snell, 31, played the majority of his cricket with Gloucestershire before being released in 2010. He went from playing minor counties to appearing in the Champions League in 2011, after being signed on a short-term deal when Somerset were without both Craig Kieswetter and Jos Buttler. He also turned out for Somerset in 2012 and, most recently, has coached wicketkeeping at Gloucestershire.”The opportunity to continue the rich tradition of developing exciting and entertaining cricketers through the Somerset Academy and on to successfully representing the Somerset first team is a challenge I am immensely looking forward to,” Snell said.”The Somerset Academy is held in high esteem around the country and I am well aware of the outstanding work by past and present coaches involved with the county’s development programmes. I am thrilled at the prospect of playing a major role in the future success of Somerset.”Maynard said: “This is a key role within the Somerset cricketing structure and we are delighted to have been able to appoint Steve, who has played for the county and knows the set-up at the County Ground. Steve is a high-quality coach and he will bring additional experience, enthusiasm and expertise to the team here at the County Ground.”

Despite a push that took the game into the last hour, Somerset couldn’t force a win over Nottinghamshire

Alex Winter at Taunton10-Aug-2012
ScorecardJames Taylor made 46 as Nottinghamshire made sure of a draw at Taunton•Getty ImagesDespite a push that took the game into the last hour, Somerset couldn’t force a win over Nottinghamshire. The game was hindered badly by the weather and, with the ECB launching more consumer research into the domestic game, attention among members turned to the makeup of the fixture list in the future.A healthy crowd was in to enjoy the sunshine, highlighting Somerset’s good membership and the support for Championship cricket. The county also boast a big following for Twenty20 and the balance between all the competitions gives the chief executive, Guy Lavender, plenty to ponder for his wishes of the schedule.”We’re lucky here; we’re extremely well attended for County Championship cricket,” Lavender told ESPNcricinfo as Notts batted out for a draw on the final afternoon. “We’ve got a very strong membership base and we attach importance to the Championship as the premier competition. But there are different views about it around the country so there are certain things we have to do to make the structure more sustainable.”Number one: the fixture list has to be easy to understand; number two, it has to be interesting; and number three, it has to be at a time where people can come and watch the games. If we just descend into ‘how many matches’ or ‘how many counties’, it misses the point. You don’t need detailed debates, we’ve got to say, ‘What works? What type of structure is attractive to the customer?’ That is what drives the game.”When the counties decided more T20 would drive the game there was a general downward trend in overall profit. Somerset were one of few that thrived. They can make more matches work and saw takings fall back this season with the reduction in games.”We’d like to see the number of T20 games increase,” said Lavender, who wasn’t pleased to see the Morgan Report rejected. “As a club we have the capacity to increase the number of fixtures and not only make them pay but make them good experiences for the supporters. We would have a preference for matches to be spread out across the course of the season because it provides the best opportunity for more people to come and watch. If you schedule T20 at the right time – as with CB40 – then people will turn up. It’s not rocket science.”But finding regularity in the calendar is hampered by broadcasting demands, with Sky keen to screen a match every night of the week – reducing the capacity for T20 to be staged on a regular evening and the scope for matches to be spread out.”Of course there are broadcast demands but I don’t think that drives all of the decision-making about the schedule,” Lavender said. “If we want cricket to thrive then we have to give people the best opportunity to come and watch and I think there is recognition from the ECB and Sky that that needs to happen.”With the Gloucestershire T20, because of the rivalry and locality, that match will sell out whenever it is played but others won’t. So we need to provide something that, perhaps as a not-as-keen follower of Somerset, you can go to every other Friday. It creates regularity and it fits into the way people live their lives and I think that’s really important. And that holds true for other formats of the game.”The problem is every county is looking at the structure of the game through their own lens and it’s the responsibility of the ECB to work for the greater good of the game.”That greater good is being worked out through further consumer research. What it should find – given the backlash the proposed cuts received from players and supporters – is that the County Championship is just fine; and at Taunton both teams lost ground to Warwickshire in the title race that has four more rounds to produce another thrilling climax.Nottinghamshire will be the happier of the teams from this draw. They keep Somerset at arm’s length and survived what could have been a tricky afternoon on a pitch that began to show signs of invariable bounce and some turn. Pete Trego was also getting some deliveries to tail into the right-hander – it was an inswinger that ended James Taylor’s attractive 46. He also had Michael Lumb superbly caught one-handed by Jos Buttler – keeping wicket in place of Craig Kieswetter and suggesting Somerset have enough depth to stay the distance in search of a first County Championship success.They have hung on to the title race despite a host of injuries, their squad so depleted they had to cancel a second-XI match earlier this season. But they now have the chance to make another run for a maiden title and three of their remaining four matches are at Taunton, against Sussex, Surrey and Worcestershire.

James Taylor is “relishing” the prospect of facing South Africa’s bowling attack at Headingley having been called into the squad for the second Test but is not taking his debut for granted

ESPNcricinfo staff29-Jul-2012James Taylor is “relishing” the prospect of facing South Africa’s bowling attack at Headingley having been called into the squad for the second Test but is not taking his debut for granted.Unless England change the balance of their side and play five bowlers, which is unlikely, Taylor will earn his first cap at No. 6 after Ravi Bopara became unavailable due to personal reasons shortly before the squad was named on Sunday morning.Taylor, who has been captain of England Lions over the last two years and averages 61.60 from ten first-class matches for them, has long been earmarked as a Test batsman in waiting. But he had seemingly fallen down the pecking order at the start of this season after failing to secure a place in the extended England performance squad and Jonny Bairstow was chosen to replace an injured Bopara against West Indies.However, Taylor led the Lions against the West Indians in May and scored an impressive century at Derby and this week hit his first Championship hundred for his new county, Nottinghamshire, against Sussex. It is actually Taylor’s one-day form that has been more consistent and he has made 345 runs at 69 in the CB40.”Facing South Africa’s bowling attack is always going to be a tough challenge but it’s something that I would relish because getting an England Test call has been my aim from the word go,” he said. “Test cricket is the pinnacle but there was a noticeable step up to division one of the Championship and wickets haven’t been easy to bat on this season”I’ve always backed myself to play at the highest level and even though I’m young I’ve played a lot of cricket and I’ve got a lot of runs behind me. The next goal is to get a place in the eleven and if I get that opportunity I have to take it with both hands. If I get in the team then I have to work hard to get runs and then work harder again to do that consistently.”I’ve always tried to keep my feet on the ground and strive to become a better player and that will always be my mantra.”Taylor’s move from Leicestershire to Nottinghamshire for this season was with the aim of boosting his Test ambitions after getting a brief taste of international cricket last season against Ireland. He has now jumped back ahead of Bairstow while fighting off the challenge of Eoin Morgan and Nick Compton.”I hoped that I would be next in line but I never took anything for granted although I have scored consistent runs in all forms of the game to earn this chance,” he said. “Playing at Headingley would be a very proud moment for me but nothing has happened yet, I’m just one step closer and waiting for the nod and the opportunity to help England to get back into the series.

Harshad Khadiwale and Kedar Jadhav continued their run feast, scoring centuries on the first day for the second week in succession as Maharashtra plundered 360 for 3 against Goa

Amol Karhadkar in Pune21-Nov-2013
ScorecardFile photo – Harshad Khadiwale made his third successive century•K SivaramanHarshad Khadiwale and Kedar Jadhav continued their run feast, scoring centuries on the first day for the second week in succession as Maharashtra plundered 360 for 3 against Goa at the Subrata Roy Sahara Stadium on the outskirts of Pune.The picturesque stadium has been a happy hunting ground for home batsmen and they took advantage of a mediocre Goa bowling attack after being put in to bat.With Maharashtra deciding to alter their combination from last week’s game in Hyderabad, the promising youngster Vijay Zol walked out to open the innings with Khadiwale. Though Saurabh Bandekar did ask a few questions with the new ball, the duo survived the initial period. Zol, who scored a double-century on Ranji debut, moved to 20 before Bandekar breached his defense with an incoming delivery that crashed into the off stump.Khadiwale, coming into the game on the back of a century in each of Maharashtra’s two games so far, looked in supreme touch. He added 75 with Sangram Atitkar before the latter was trapped lbw by the offspinner Amit Yadav in the penultimate over before lunch.That brought together Maharashtra’s in-form combination of Jadhav and Khadiwale, who had shared a 206-run partnership in Hyderabad last week. The pair took on Goa’s spin duo of Shadab Jakati and Yadav, who did the bulk of the bowling in the second session. Jadhav went after Jakati, slogging the left-arm spinner for his first six that rammed into the super sopper outside the square leg fence. Jadhav’s craft was also on display as he then played late cuts whenever either of the spinners pitched it short.Jadhav then danced down the wicket and hit Yadav almost 20 rows back into the stands to complete his fifty. Khadiwale shifted gears and hit Yadav for a six over long-off. Minutes before tea, Khadiwale flicked the medium-pacer Gauresh Gawas through midwicket for a couple and completed his 12th first-class century.The attacking stand prompted the Goa captain Ravikant Shukla to adopt defensive tactics. Jakati changed his angle to over the wicket with a defensive line, hoping to contain the batsmen. Even that didn’t work as Jadhav reverse swept the first ball to the point fence, and then paddled one to the fine leg boundary, much like Sachin Tendulkar.Jadhav threw his wicket away shortly after scoring his second successive century, top-edging Yadav to offer wicketkeeper Keenan Vaz a dolly. But with Khadiwale looking solid and Ankit Bawne having reached a sedate 36, Maharashtra looked set to pile on their third-successive 450-plus total on the board.

A round-up of the second day of the first round of matches in the Ranji Trophy Elite 2011-12

ESPNcricinfo staff04-Nov-2011Group ARavindra Jadeja scored his maiden first-class triple-century to carry Saurashtra to 545 against Orissa at the Barabati Stadium in Cuttack. Jadeja’s 314 became the highest-ever score by any Saurashtra batsman, going past Cheteshwar Pujara’s 302, and is the 11th highest score overall in Ranji history. He got his runs at an impressive strike-rate of 83.73, including 29 fours and nine sixes, though it is not the fastest triple-hundred in the Ranji Trophy.The rest of Saurashtra’s middle and lower order could not get going, and no one managed more than Pratik Mehta’s 39 on the second day. New-ball bowler Basant Mohanty finished with the best figures for Orissa: 4 for 86. Despite Saurashtra’s daunting total, Orissa’s openers managed to safely negotiate 18 overs and take their side to 51 for 0 at stumps. Saurashtra’s spinners, Kamlesh Makvana and Jadeja, conceded one run in four overs between them.Jadeja has so far only entered contention for a spot in India’s limited-overs side, but has shown the ability to bat long in first-class cricket. His previous highest score was against Orissa as well – an unbeaten 232 in 2008-09 – and he had an unbeaten 170 in the Duleep Trophy semi-final last season.

KB Pawan, who did not manage a single century over eight matches last season, has started this year’s Ranji Trophy with his highest score in first-class cricket – an unbeaten 251. Stuart Binny also got his highest first-class score, 151, and the two big innings gave Karnataka a total of 623 for 6 declared against Rajasthan at the Field Club Ground in Udaipur. Rajasthan, last year’s champions, lost two early wickets in reply, leaving them under pressure at the end of the second day in Udaipur.They had started the day under pressure too, with Karnataka having reached 273 for 3 by stumps on day one. But Pankaj Singh, who swung sides out for fun in the Plate League last season, got a couple of early wickets on the second morning, bowling Amit Verma for 69, and trapping CM Gautam in front for 10. Pawan, though, carried on from his 121 not out overnight, and at the other end Stuart Binny attacked. Binny, who had two centuries last season, scored his 151 at a strike-rate of 107.09, striking 23 fours and three sixes. His aggression meant Karnataka were able to lift their rate and scored 350 runs in 73.3 overs on the second day before declaring.Deepak Chahar, the seamer who had an impressive first season last year, found the going hard in the Elite division, toiling for 42 overs for figures of 1 for 165. Rajasthan’s problems were compounded when Vaibhav Deshpande, promoted to the opening slot in the absence of Aakash Chopra who is out for this game with a back spasm, was dismissed off the first ball of their innings by R Vinay Kumar. In the seventh over, their captain Hrishikesh Kanitkar perished to Abhimanyu Mithun and they ended the day on 49 for 2. Ashok Menaria, the 21-year-old allrounder of whom much is expected, has been promoted to No. 4 and will face the tough challenge of pulling his team back into the match on Saturday.

Punjab collapsed on the second morning at the Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, losing their last five wickets for 10 runs to finish with 350 against Uttar Pradesh. UP then got themselves to 221 for 3 and their first motive on Saturday will be to secure a first-innings leadPunjab’s remarkable slide started in the eighth over of the day, when RP Singh removed Sandeep Sharma to complete his ninth five-wicket haul in first-class cricket. In the next over Bhuvneshwar Kumar, UP’s leading wicket-taker last season, took three wickets in four balls. First to go was Bipul Sharma, trapped lbw for a six-ball duck. That brought Harbhajan Singh, Punjab’s captain, who was recently dropped from the India Test squad, to the crease; but he was sent straight back as Bhuvneshwar trapped him lbw too. Manpreet Gony denied Bhuvneshwar the hat-trick but was gone the ball after that, giving Bhuvneshwar figures of 4 for 82. Piyush Chawla took the last wicket and Punjab’s Mandeep Singh, who had started the day on 158, was left stranded on 175.UP lost opener Eklavya Dwivedi early to a run-out, but a century stand between Tanmay Srivastava and Mohammad Kaif steadied them. The pair were both dismissed in the 60s, but Parvinder Singh came in and got 57 not out, and he and Suresh Raina negotiated safely till stumps. Raina faces a battle to get back into India’s Test squad after a poor tour of England. He did not feature in the Ranji Trophy at all last season because of international commitments but will be hoping to catch the selectors’ eye with some big innings.File photo: Wriddhiman Saha is looking to keep his place as reserve keeper in India’s Test squad•Associated PressMumbai’s lower order backed up Rohit Sharma with steady cameos, to carry the team to 483 against Railways at the Karnail Singh Stadium. Mumbai resumed on 338 for 5 and lost Onkar Gurav in the first over of the day, to a run-out affected by Shivakant Shukla. Railways would have wanted to finish things off early after that bright start but Mumbai’s tail wagged. Ankeet Chavan got 44, Ramesh Powar made 30 and Dhawal Kulkarni scored 26 not out. Meanwhile, Rohit Sharma got himself from his overnight score of 133 to 175 before being bowled by offspinner Shreyas Khanolkar, who finished the innings with figures of 5 for 78.Railways’ day got worse when they came out to bat and lost three wickets in the 23 overs they had to bat out at the end of the day. Aavishkar Salvi, the 30-year-old seamer, provided an early breakthrough, dismissing Khanolkar caught-behind. Mumbai captain Wasim Jaffer did not wait long before bringing on his spinners Iqbal Abdulla and Ramesh Powar, and the offspinner Powar picked up two wickets to leave Railways in trouble at 66 for 3.Group BDelhi, who missed out on the quarter-finals last year after winning just one match in the group stage, have made a positive start to this season, bowling neighbours Haryana out for 293 at the Roshanara Club Ground in Delhi, and then getting to 214 for 3. Delhi had to manage without their highest wicket-taker from last year, Sumit Narwal, and would have been encouraged that their young fast bowler Pradeep Sangwan took his first five-for since the 2009-10 season. Sangwan had picked up three wickets on the first day and did not waste time wiping out the tail, finishing with 5 for 67 as Haryana could only add 37 runs to their overnight score of 256 for 7.Delhi’s opening pair of Shikhar Dhawan and Unmukt Chand will be carefully watched this year. Dhawan has been on the fringes of the India one-day squad, while the 18-year-old Chand’s performances in the Under-19 Quadrangular series in Visakhapatnam have marked him as someone to watch for the future. They both fell within the first 15 overs however, and it was debutant Milind Kumar and the experienced Rajat Bhatia who gave Delhi control with unbeaten half-centuries. Milind, a 20-year-old batsman, had only played three List A matches and a couple of Twenty20s for Delhi before this season but remained unbeaten on 84 at the end of the second day, and will be looking for a century on Ranji debut on Saturday.

Wriddhiman Saha’s unbeaten 167 took Bengal to an imposing 560 for 6 declared against Gujarat at Eden Gardens. Bengal lost Manoj Tiwary, who was on 120 not out overnight, early to Amit Singh but Laxmi Ratan Shukla settled in to keep Saha company. Shukla and Saha were involved in a record-breaking 417-run stand last season. This time they did not quite manage something of that magnitude but the 130 runs they put together helped Bengal reach a formidable position.Shukla edged Rikin Chauhan behind on 78. Saha then strung together his third-century stand of the innings, putting on 142 – the best partnership of the three – with Saurasish Lahiri at almost five runs an over. Tiwary declared late in the day, allowing his bowlers a six-over crack at Gujarat.Parthiv Patel and Priyank Panchal batted till stumps. Parthiv is in direct competition with Saha for the spot of India’s reserve wicketkeeper and will want to match Saha’s performance. Gujarat will need a remarkable effort, though, to prevent Bengal from taking first-innings point at the least.Heavy rain prevented any play in the Tamil Nadu v Baroda match at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, for the second day running.