Ranji Trophy 2019-20: Anuj Rawat helps Delhi fight back in second dig

Gujarat gains a 42-run first-innings lead; Rawat’s 133 steers Delhi to 228 for 4 by stumps on Day Three.

In full flow: Anuj Rawat drives en route to his 133 at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Thursday.

Having conceded a lead of 42 runs, Delhi’s bid to score briskly and give its bowlers a chance to have a go at Gujarat worked partially well on the penultimate day of their Ranji Trophy match here on Thursday.

After claiming six Gujarat wickets and restricting the visiting team to 335, Delhi rode on the shoulders of opener Anuj Rawat’s 133 to reach 228 for four at stumps. Delhi is now 186 runs ahead and aims to score some quick runs in the first session on Friday before making Gujarat bat again. Since nothing other than six points from this match is going to help Delhi’s cause in the championship, it is trying to make a match of it.

RANJI TROPHY ROUND VIII DAY 3 | AS IT HAPPENED

Gujarat, assured of three points in case of a draw, will obviously assess the situation before deciding on how to go about the run-chase.

Five-wicket-haul for Simarjeet

Resuming the day with optimism, Gujarat’s hopes of building a big first-innings lead did not quite materialise after overnight not-out Dhruv Rawal fell quickly, six runs short of a well-deserved century. Though Manpreet Juneja went on to score 124, Gujarat lower-order could not contribute much. Delhi’s hard-working medium pacer Simarjeet Singh finished with five wickets.

Anuj Rawat celebrates his century. - SANDEEP SAXENA

 

When Delhi batted a second time, the early fall of Hiten Dalal did not deter the host. Rawat and skipper Dhruv Shorey raised 86 runs for the second wicket before Gujarat tasted two successes in quick succession.

The dismissals of Shorey and Nitish Rana, who failed for the second time in the match, raised Gujarat’s hopes of forcing an outright win. But once Jonty Sidhu joined Rawat, Delhi scored briskly during their century stand, Gujarat was on the defensive.

Late in the day, Rawat perished in his pursuit of quick runs.

• Delhi -1st innings: 293
• Gujarat -1st innings: Samit Gohil c Rawat b Simarjeet 51, Priyank Panchal c Rawat b Simarjeet 10, Rajul Bhatt c Rana b Siddhant 1, Bhargav Merai c Himmat b Bidhuri 18, Manpreet Juneja c Sidhu b Simarjeet 124, Dhruv Rawal c Rawat b Rana 94, Chirag Gandhi c Rawat b Rana 0, Axar Patel b Simarjeet 11, Roosh Kalaria c Himmat b Simarjeet 0, Chintan Gaja lbw b Siddhant 0, A. Nagwaswalla (not out) 0, Extras (b-12, lb-11, nb-3) 26, Total (in 85.2 overs) 335.
• Fall of wickets: 1-22, 2-33, 3-78, 4-88, 5-309, 6-315, 7-326, 8-326, 9-335.
• Delhi bowling: Siddhant 19-4-68-2, Simarjeet 22.2-4-75-5, Khejroliya 17-1-63-0, Bidhuri 10-1-35-1, Baroka 11-0-52-0, Rana 6-2-19-2.
• Delhi -2nd innings: Anuj Rawat c Kalaria b Bhatt 133, Hiten Dalal lbw b Gaja 1, Dhruv Shorey c Merai b Patel 34, Nitish Rana c Juneja b Nagwaswalla 10, Jonty Sidhu (batting) 44, Himmat Singh (batting) 3, Extras (nb-2, w-1) 3, Total (for four wickets in 69 overs) 228.
• Fall of wickets: 1-10, 2-96, 3-113, 4-219.
• Gujarat bowling: Kalaria 14-1-49-0, Gaja 11-4-35-1, Nagwaswalla 16-1-62-1, Patel 21-1-56-1, Bhatt 7-1-26-1.