File Photo of Chetan Bist
Nagaland rode on veteran wicketkeeper-batter Chetan Bist's all-round show to down Sikkim by six wickets in their Ranji Trophy plate group opener here on Sunday.
The former Rajasthan glovesman slammed 115 and took eight catches behind the stumps as Nagaland chased down 174 in 40 overs to pocket six points.
Earlier, Shrikant Mundhe was the wrecker-in-chief with 3/46, while Abu Nechim and Nagaho Chishi claimed two wickets each as Nagaland bundled out Sikkim for 283 in 82 overs after they resumed the final day on 197/6 in their second essay.
Top-scorer Bist, who guided Nagaland to 412 in their first innings, was exceptional behind the stumps and took five catches in Sikkim's second innings.
In their chase, Nagaland lost their opener Sedezhalie Rupero (13) cheaply inside 11 overs, but Mundhe took charge with a 96-ball 59 not out to seal the issue in his team's favour.
Bengal bounce back to stun Baroda after Shahbaz, Abhishek's fifties
All-rounder Shahbaz Ahmed and debutant wicketkeeper Abhishek Porel struck unbeaten fifties as Bengal bounced back after their first-innings debacle to secure a dramatic four-wicket win over Baroda in their Ranji Trophy Group B opener here on Sunday.
Chasing 349 on the fourth day after being shot out for a paltry 88 in the first innings, Bengal rode on the duo of Ahmed and Porel, who stitched an unbroken 108-run partnership for the seventh wicket to steer their team home.
Resuming on 146/2, Bengal received an early jolt when skipper Abhimanyu Easwaran got out without any addition to his overnight total of 79 in the fourth ball of the day.
There were familiar jitters in the middle with Bengal losing three quick wickets including the duo of Sudip Chatterjee (18) and overnight batter Anustup Majumdar (33) in the space of four balls to be 176/5.
Medium-pacer Abhimanyusingh Rajput (3/73) revived Baroda's hopes with the double blow. But Bengal's deputy sports minister and former skipper Manoj Tiwary, who made a return to cricket after his foray into politics last year, arrested the slide with a fighting 37 from 61 balls before becoming Rajput's third victim.
Tottering at 242/6, Bengal unearthed a future star in the 19-year-old Abhishek, who showed utmost maturity and matched his senior partner, Shahbaz. Abhishek hit seven boundaries en route to his maiden fifty. Shahbaz also hit an identical seven fours -- all through the off-side region -- as the pair sealed the issue in 91. 3 overs.
"It feels incredible. Wanted to start well for the senior team and as always it feels great to win for Bengal. There was some pressure but teammates, seniors helped a lot and advised me to play my normal game. Shahbaz da (brother) guided me while we were batting on the wicket.
I played according to our plan and played my normal game," Abhishek said about his dream debut.
Bengal skipper Easwaran praised both the batters and bowlers for the remarkable comeback.
"Every player has contributed to the cause, as the batters have shown character the bowlers have done commendable jobs too," Abhimanyu said. "It's about believing in the hard work that we have put in. The best part is even when we had 349 runs to chase, every single member of the team believed that we can do the job. Shahbaz has batted with a lot of responsibility, special mention to Abhishek Porel- the character he showed, the attitude he was batting with was great to watch," the skipper added.
Cricket Association of Bengal president Avishek Dalmiya and secretary Snehasish Ganguly congratulated the team after the win.
"This is a team with the right mixture of youth and experience. It is nice to see youngsters like Abhishek Porel who played exceptionally well in his debut match. The team also showed grit, determination and the will to win against all odds. Shahbaz Ahmed once again showed why he is a fabulous finisher in any format of the game. Captain Abhimanyu Easwaran led the battle from the front and filled the team with belief. The bowlers also did a fine job restricting Baroda twice. I wish them well in future matches," Dalmiya said.
Snehasish said it's a result of their focus on developing the youth.
"We are putting thrust on youngsters and are doing leagues like T20 League, U25 emerging players meet and district meets to scout the young talent and harness their potential and watch them flourish.
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"The philosophy is to give them a chance and help them mature. I would also like to congratulate coach Arun Lal, his deputy Sourashis Lahiri and the support staff for their contribution," the CAB secretary added.
Bachhav stars as Maharashtra thrash Assam by innings and seven runs
Experienced left-arm spinner Satyajeet Bachhav snared seven wickets to help his team Maharashtra thrash Assam by an innings and seven runs in their Elite Group G Ranji Trophy match here on Sunday.
Asked to follow on after being shot out for 248 in their first innings, Assam were bundled out for a meagre 160 in their second essay, as Bachhav (7/45) spun a web around the opposition batting line-up to give his side a bonus-point win.
Bachhav took 11 wickets in the match and played a key role in the victory alongside debutant Pawan Shah, whose double hundred propelled Maharashtra to a mammoth 415 in their first innings.
Assam started on their overnight score of 82/3, with Riyan Parag (56; 6x4) and Sarupam Purkayastha (38; 6x4) holding fort. The duo tried to take the game deep by adding 72 runs for the fourth wicket, but the task facing them was very difficult as Maharashtra pegged Assam back by removing both the set batters in quick succession.
First, Manoj Ingle (2/29) sent back Parag, and then, Bachhav removed Purkayastha as Assam slipped to 144/5. Then it was the Bachhav show, as he ran through the tail at the Chaudhary Bansilal Stadium. Bachhav was ably supported by Ingle and Divyang Hinganekar (1/7), who played their roles to perfection.
Karnataka-Railways match ends in a draw; J&K starts with win over Pondicherry
Karnataka and Railways played out a draw in a Ranji Trophy Elite Group C match while Jammu and Kashmir began on a winning note, trouncing Pondicherry by eight wickets, here on Sunday.
Resuming at 63 for one, Karnataka slipped from 179 for 2 to 223 for 9 before skipper Manish Pandey declared, leaving the opponent with a 278-run target from 41 overs for an improbable victory. The Railways finished at 69 for 4.
With Mayank Agarwal batting on 39, the focus was on how much the India Test batter could get.
Having missed out in the first innings, the right-hander played with a lot of restraint and reached a half-century.
It took a good catch by Akshat Pandey to see the back of Agarwal for 56.
R Samarth batted fluently for his 83 (170 balls, 8 fours) and was involved in a half-century stand for the third wicket with K Siddharth, who hit a ton in the first innings.
After the exit of Siddharth at 179 and then Samarth at 192, the Karnataka innings saw wickets fall quickly and slid to 223 for 9 before Pandey declared.
For Railways, medium-pacer Amit Mishra finished with 4 for 58 while captain Karn Sharma took three wickets.
Railways, in the second innings, slumped to 14 for 3 with debutant Vijayakumar Vyshak (2/16) sending back Mrunal Devdhar (20) and Arindam Ghosh (0).
Vivek Singh (18) batted resolutely along with Mohammad Saif (27 not out) to ensure there were no further alarms.
Karnataka picked three points for their efforts while Railways earned one point.
In the other match of the day, veteran spinner Parvez Rasool finished with a six-wicket haul, dismissing the last Pondicherry batsman to star in Jammu and Kashmir's win.
Resuming at the overnight score of 113 for 9, Pondicherry added 11 runs to the score before Sagar Trivedi (37) became Rasool's sixth victim in the second innings.
Needing 42 runs to begin the season with a win, J&K lost the openers - Qamran Iqbal (8) and Jatin Wadhwan (9) before Shubham Pundir (21 not out) and Ian Dev Singh (6 not out) saw the team home.
Brief Scores
Maharashtra 415 all-out versus Assam 248 and 160 (Riyan Parag 56, Sarupam Purkayastha 38; Satyajeet Bachhav 7/45, Manoj Ingle 2/29). Maharashtra won by an innings and seven runs.
At Sultanpur: Uttar Pradesh 301 all out and 280/6 (Saurabh Kumar 81 not out, Rinku Singh 62 not out; Akshay Wakhare 3/70) versus Vidarbha 548/6 (Faiz Fazal 192, Akshay Wadkar 102 not out; Saurabh Kumar 3/160, Ankit Rajpoot 2/86).
Match Drawn, Vidarbha took the first-innings lead.
Karnataka: 481 & 223 for 9 in 63. 2 overs (Mayank Agarwal 56, R Samarth 83, K V Siddharth 39, Amit Mishra 4 for 58, Karn Sharma 3 for 47) drew Railways 426 in 128.3 overs (Arindam Ghosh 105, Mohammad Saif 84) and 69 for 4 in 33 overs (Mohammad Saif 27 not out, V Vyshak 2 for 16).
Karnataka: 3 points, Railways: 1 Pondicherry: 343 & 124 all out in 45. 5 overs (Sagar Trivedi 37, Parvez Rasool six for 29) lost to Jammu and Kashmir 426 in 114. 1 overs (Qamran Iqbal 96, Abdul Samad 103) and 45 for 2 in 12. 4 overs by eight wickets.
At Barabati Stadium: Baroda 181 and 255. Bengal 88 and 350/6; 91.3 overs (Abhimanyu Easwaran 79, Shahbaz Ahmed 71 not out, Abhishek Porel 53 not out; Abhimanyusingh Rajput 3/73). Bengal won by four wickets.
Points: Bengal 4, Baroda 0.
At Vilas Cricket Ground: Hyderabad 347 and 269/8 declared. Chandigarh 216 and 183; 50.5 overs (Arslan Khan 68; Ravi Teja 6/41). Hyderabad won by 217 runs. Points: Hyderabad 6, Chandigarh 0.
At Jadavpur University 2nd Campus ground, Saltlake: Bihar 686/5 declared. Mizoram 328; 122.3 overs (Taruwar Kohli 151, Uday Kaul 96; Sachin Kumar 4/67, Ashutosh Aman 3/46) and following on 199/4; 60 overs (Taruwar Kohli 101 not out, Uday Kaul 56; Abhijeet Saket 3/29). Match drawn. Points: Bihar 3, Mizoram 1.
At Videocon Academy Ground: Sikkim 302 and 283; 82 overs (Sumit Singh 85, Codana Ajit Karthik 61; Shrikant Mundhe 3/46). Nagaland 412 and 175/4; 40 overs (Shrikant Mundhe 59 not out, Yugandhar Singh 40). Nagaland won by 6 wickets. Points: Nagaland 6, Sikkim 0.
