Ranji Trophy Round 5, Day 3: Jalaj Saxena picks seven, Kerala beats Punjab

Jalaj Saxena helped Kerala secure a 21-run win over Punjab in a thrilling contest in Thiruvananthapuram.

Updated : Jan 13, 2020 17:41 IST

Tamil Nadu's Kaushik Gandhi departs after being dismissed by Shams Mulani at the M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. - PTI
Tamil Nadu's Kaushik Gandhi departs after being dismissed by Shams Mulani at the M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. - PTI
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Tamil Nadu's Kaushik Gandhi departs after being dismissed by Shams Mulani at the M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. - PTI

Welcome to Sportstar 's coverage of Day Three of the fifth round of Ranji Trophy 2019-20 season.

 

 

 

 

 

It's stumps, across venues. That brings us to a close. Kerala managed a close win over Punjab, while Bihar completed an innings win over Manipur.

The game between Odisha and Haryana also promises to possess a thrilling climax. Odisha needs 32 more runs to win on Tuesday, with three wickets in hand.

There were plenty of runs on Day Three — centuries from Naman Ojha and Gokul Sharma, and a double-century from Rahul Dalal. Among the major wicket-takers were Bihar's Abhijeet, Saurashtra's Jaydev Unadkat, and Kerala's Jalaj Saxena.

Join us for Day Four, at 9.30 am, on Tuesday. Until then, it's goodbye.

Mizoram vs Meghalaya | It's stumps, at the Videocon Ground in Kolkata. Mizoram is on 114 for 7 in its first innings, it trails by 548 runs. Lalmama (24 n.o., 42b, 5x4) and Bobby (0 n.o., 0b) are batting.

The wickets have been shared around, with Abhay Negi and A. Singhania taking two wickets each.

Puducherry vs Goa | Goa, in its second innings, is 220 for 5. It leads Puducherry by 230 runs. Snehal Kauthankar (58 n.o., 137b, 8x4) and S. K. Patel (60 n.o., 119b, 8x4, 1x6) are batting.

Sagar Udeshi and Sagar Trivedi have claimed two wickets each.

Maharashtra vs Jharkhand | Jharkhand is 47 for 1 in its second innings. It trails overall by 217 runs. Md. Nazim (23 n.o., 34b, 3x4) and Utkarsh Singh (12 n.o., 36b, 2x6) are batting.

The contest is being held at the Reliance cricket ground in Nagothane.

J&K vs Services | J&K's lead has crossed 300. It is 184 for 5 in its second innings, with Shubham Singh Pundir (90 n.o., 177b, 12x4, 1x6) and Fazil Rashid (25 n.o., 88b, 2x6) batting.

Diwesh Gurdev Pathania (3 for 41) has been the most effective bowler for Services.

Bad light has stopped play, at the Airforce sports complex in Palam, New Delhi.

Haryana vs Odisha | With Odisha left with 32 runs to win, with three wickets in hand, bad light has stopped play at the Chaudhry Bansi Lal Cricket Stadium in Lahli. Rajesh Dhuper (29 n.o., 71b, 3x4) and Rajesh Mohanty (4 n.o., 14x4, 1x6) are batting.

Ashish Chahal has taken six wickets.

UP vs Baroda | In Kanpur, Baroda has suffered a middle-order collapse, and is struggling at 168 for 8 in its first innings. Vishnu Solanki was the latest to be dismissed, for 91.

Spinner Saurabh Kumar has been the most successful bowler for UP so far, with three wickets.

Baroda trails by 262 runs.

Railways vs Madhya Pradesh | Bad light has stopped play at the Karnail Singh Stadium in New Delhi. Madhya Pradesh is 308 for 5 in its second innings, and is ahead overall by 188 runs. Naman Ojha, the captain, struck a century. Venkatesh Iyer (36 n.o., 41b, 4x4, 1x6) and Yash Dubey (79 n.o., 138b, 9x4) are batting.

Rajasthan vs Gujarat | The contest in Jaipur has been paused due to bad light. Rajasthan managed to take the lead against Gujarat in the first innings; at 327 for 7, it is two runs ahead now. Ashok Menaria has continued his good form; he is batting on 86. 

Tripura vs Uttarakhand | It's stumps, in Agartala. Uttarakhand is 21 for 1 in its second innings; opener Arya Sethi was dismissed lbw by Rana Datta for a duck.

Uttarakhand needs a further 168 runs to make Tripura bat again.

Andhra vs Hyderabad | Hyderabad is three wickets down already, in its second innings. It needs another 223 runs to make Andhra bat again.

Andhra declared its first innings closed at 489 for 8. Prashanth Kumar hit a century on Day Two, and there were four half-centuries — by C. R. Gnaneshwar, Hanuma Vihari, Ricky Bhui and Karan Shinde. Shinde fell to Mehdi Hasan six short of a century.

P. Vijay Kumar has taken all three wickets in Hyderabad's second innings. Akshath Reddy, J. Mallikarjun and Himalay Agarwal are all dismissed.

Arunachal Pradesh vs Nagaland | It's stumps, in Sovima. Nagaland has been able to secure a first-innings lead. Despite the best efforts of Rahul Dalal, who scored an unbeaten 267, Arunachal Pradesh was bowled out for 460, 70 runs behind Nagaland's first-innings total.

Nagaland has just started its second innings. It's 10 for 0 after six overs. Its lead is 84.

Saurashtra vs Karnataka | Karnataka has been bowled out for 171. It gives Saurashtra a massive lead of 410 runs. Saurashtra has enforced the follow-on.

Jaydev Unadkat (5 for 49) and Kamlesh Makwana (3 for 27) were the chief wicket-takers for Saurashtra.

Assam vs Chhattisgarh | Assam has declared its innings closed at 464 for 9, to make the opposition bat in the little time left in the day. Chhattisgarh has already lost a wicket in its second innings. It's 16 for 1, with Shashank Chandrakar dismissed bowled by Arup Das.

Chhattisgarh trails Assam by 130 runs.

Tamil Nadu vs Mumbai | R. Ashwin and Sai Kishore have managed to keep Mumbai at bay in the evening session, with Ashwin taking the bulk of the responsibility. Tamil Nadu 229 for 7. Trails by 259 runs.

Kerala vs Punjab | M.R. Praveen Chandran pings: Kerala win by 21 runs. Jalaj takes his seventh wicket. Markande gets a faint edge and is caught by Baby at backward shortleg. Jalaj finishes with excellent figures of seven for 51.

Kerala vs Punjab | M.R. Praveen Chandran with an update: Nidheesh gets the breakthrough for Kerala after tea. Kaul (22) caught behind off the third ball. Punjab 122/9

Andhra vs Hyderabad | Early blow for Hyderabad as Akshath Reddy departs early. Hyderabad trails Andhra by 251 runs. Hyderabad 15/1 after 4.3 overs.

Kerala vs Punjab | It's a humdinger at the St. Xavier's KCA Cricket Ground in Thiruvananthapuram. Here's more from M. R. Praveen Chandran: Ninth-wicket stand frustrating Kerala. Siddharth Kaul and Mayank Markande chipping away at the target. Punjab 117 for 8.

Saurashtra vs Karnataka | Karnataka is stumbling, too. J. Suchith departs. Here's Ashwin Achal, with more: Unadkat gets five. Cleans up Suchith with a sharp inswinger. Suchith bowled through bat and pad.

Tamil Nadu vs Mumbai | Dinesh Karthik edges Royston Dias behind, and departs for 7. Tamil Nadu is seven wickets down now, with 195 on the board. It trails by 293 runs.

Saurashtra vs Karnataka | R. Samarth is out. Here's more from Ashwin Achal: Unadkat gets an outside edge to remove Samarth. Huge wicket. Big celebration from Unadkat, who screams and sprints almost until the Saurashtra dug out.

Unadkat has four wickets.

Kerala vs Punjab | Kerala is now just two wickets away from victory. Here's more from M. R. Praveen Chandran: Eighth wicket down for Punjab. The score is 88 for eight. Jalaj gets his sixth wicket, wins an lbw appeal against Vinay Choudhary.

Tamil Nadu vs Mumbai | TN would have been seven down now had the man stationed at short cover not dropped a catch. It was a reprieve for R. Ashwin; off Royston Dias, he drove the ball seemingly instinctively. It would have been fatal, but the ball spills out of the fielder's hands.

Saurashtra vs Karnataka | Here's Ashwin Achal, from Rajkot: Harvik Desai drops a sitter at slip off Unadkat. Life for Samarth on 57.

Tamil Nadu vs Mumbai | Indrajith departs, thanks to a sharp, low catch taken by Jay Bista at second slip. He plucked the catch on his right as the ball was dying on him. Sharp reflexes. Tamil Nadu, at 186 for 6, trails Mumbai by 302 runs.

R. Ashwin has come out to bat.

Assam vs Chhattisgarh | Gokul Sharma has been dismissed for 129 (350b, 14x4), by Ajay Mandal. It ends the partnership between Gokul and Saahil Jain. The alliance was worth 121 runs. Saahil is batting on 70 (125b, 10x4).

The score: 403 for 5. It's tea.

Tamil Nadu vs Mumbai | Three quick wickets have fallen, and Tamil Nadu is suddenly five wickets down. First, Aparajith was dismissed lbw by Tushar Deshpande for 14 (41b, 1x6); then, in the next over, the set Kaushik Gandhi fell to spinner Shams Mulani, stumped out for 60 (130b, 6x4, 1x6); in the same over, Pradosh Ranjan Paul was dismissed as well, bowled.

B. Indrajith (1 n.o., 13b), and Dinesh Karthik (0 n.o., 10b) are batting.

The score: 179 for 5.

Mizoram vs Meghalaya | Opener Hruaizela has hit four fours in his 60-ball 18 so far. He is batting alongside C. Lalrinsanga, the other opener. The score: 28 for 0 in the 20th over.

Mizoram trails by 634 runs.

Kerala vs Punjab | Punjab in further trouble. Here's M. R. Praveen Chandran, from Thiruvananthapuram: Jalaj Saxena traps Malhotra in front. Played back to a ball which kept low. Fifer for Jalaj. Punjab 73 for 7.

Puducherry vs Goa | S. K. Patel has a half-century for Goa, in its second innings. Patel is batting on 58 (113b, 8x4, 1x6). Amit Verma, the captain, is giving him company; Verma came in to bat after the dismissal of Sumiran Amonkar, for 19.

Goa's lead is now 102.

Chandigarh vs Sikkim | Bad light has stopped play at the Sector-16 stadium in Chandigarh. Sikkim is 69 for 3 in 26 overs in its second innings, it still trails by 27 runs. Shreshth Nirmohi (2 for 18) and Jagjit Singh Sandhu (1 for 13) have taken the wickets.

Maharashtra vs Jharkhand | Saurabh Tiwary (40 n.o., 129b, 2x4) and Virat Singh (33 n.o., 126b, 4x4) have added 74 runs for the fourth wicket so far. M. G. Choudhary (3 for 21) has been the main wicket-taker so far.

Jharkhand still trails by 339 runs.

 

Kerala vs Punjab | Here's M. R. Praveen Chandran with the latest from Thiruvananthapuram: Jalaj Saxena gets the breakthrough for Kerala. Ends the threatening sixth-wicket stand by trapping Maan in front. Punjab 68 for 6.

Saurashtra vs Karnataka | Mankad drops a catch, but Sharath, the beneficiary, is dismissed in the next over. Here's Ashwin Achal: Sharath receives a life from Mankad, who puts down a tough chance at slip. It doesn't matter much though, because Makwana gets Sharath bowled in the same over.

The score is 93 for 6 after 47 overs. Karnataka trails by 488 runs.

J&K vs Services | In Palam, New Delhi, J&K is pegged back by the dismissal of Parvez Rasool for 45. Rasool became the third victim of Diwesh Gurdev Pathania. The 100 is up, and the lead is 218. Eight wickets are in hand.

The score: 100 for 5.

Haryana vs Odisha | In Lahli, Odisha's lost two wickets quickly. Medium-pacer Ajit Chahal has taken all the three wickets to have fallen so far. Debashish Samantray fell soon after the lunch break, dismissed lbw.

The score: 66 for 3. Odisha needs another 113 runs to win.

 

Saurashtra vs Karnataka | Karnataka's innings is unravelling. Ashwin Achal, from Rajkot, reports: Great start for Saurashtra after lunch. Dharmendrasinh Jadeja cleans up Shreyas Gopal with a beauty. Karnataka slowly sinking at 91 for 5.

UP vs Baroda | Aditya Waghmode (38 n.o., 91b, 5x4) and Vikram Solanki (43, 64b, 5x4) have added 67 runs so far, for the second wicket. Fast bowler Ankit Rajpoot has taken the only wicket to have fallen so far; he dismissed the captain, Kedar Devdhar, lbw for 11.

Baroda trails by 336 runs.

TN vs Mumbai | A quiet over from off-spinner Attarde. After playing five dot balls, Aparajith taps the ball to mid-on to take a quick single and keep strike. After 70 overs, Tamil Nadus is 146 for 2 at the M. A. Chidambaram Stadium. Kaushik Gandhi (37 n.o., 112b, 3x4) needs another 13 runs to get to his sixth half-century in first-class cricket.

Saurashtra vs Karnataka | R. Samarth needs another 10 runs to reach his half-century. He is batting alongside Shreyas Gopal (9 n.o.). Karnataka is 88 for 4 in the 42nd over; Jaydev Unadkat (3 for 28) has been the wrecker-in-chief.

Kerala vs Punjab | Gurkeerat Mann and Anmol Malhotra have added 15 runs for the sixth wicket. Punjab, at 55 for 5, needs another 91 runs to win. It's an uphill task, but the game is still anybody's.

Jalaj Saxena (3 for 16) and Sijomon Joseph (2 for 14) have been the wicket-takers for Kerala.

Manipur vs Bihar | Manipur is five down for 50 in its second innings, after having been asked to follow on. It needs another 287 runs to make Bihar bat again. Three batsmen fell for a duck. Sultan (19 n.o., 28b, 4x4) has so far been the highest scorer; he is batting alongside Akshaykumar (0 n.o., 8b).

Abhijeet (2 for 6), Vivek (1 for 16), Shivam S. Kumar (1 for 19) and Ashutosh Aman (1 for 0) have been among the wickets.

Tripura vs Uttarakhand | Play has finally begun, in Agartala. Tripura has added 24 runs to its total so far today, without having lost a wicket. R. A. Dey needs another 10 runs to reach his half-century. Harmeet Singh is batting on 32.

Rahil Shah and Pradeep Chamoli have been the two wicket-takers.

 

Arunachal Pradesh vs Nagaland | Thanks to Rahul Dalal, Arunachal Pradesh's total has crossed 300, for the loss of seven wickets. It's still an uphill task ahead for the side, as it still trails by 229 runs.

Dalal is batting on 167 (189b, 23x4, 1x6) and giving him company is Akhilesh Sahani (38 n.o., 77b, 6x4).

S. S. Mundhe has been the chief wicket-taker for Nagaland, he has four wickets.

Assam vs Chhattisgarh | Assam's lead has crossed 50. Gokul Sharma (115 n.o., 304b, 13x4) and Saahil Jain (52 n.o., 79b, 9x4) have added 90 runs for the fifth wicket.

Kerala vs Punjab | Here's M. R. Praveen Chandran: At lunch, Punjab is 55 for 5. Gurkeerat Singh is batting on 12, Anmol Malhotra is batting on 5. Kerala is a spinner short after K. C.Akshay was hit on the head during fielding practice in the morning.

Andhra vs Hyderabad | It's lunch, in Ongole. Andhra is 312 for 4, it leads by 87 runs.

Kerala vs Punjab | Punjab is five down. Here's M. R. Praveen Chandran: Abhishek Sharma (0) attempts a horrible shot. Tries to hoick Sijomon misses the ball and is stumped. Punjab 40 for 5.

TN vs Mumbai | Suryap Prakash departs after a sedate knock of 41. He tries to turn a delivery from left-arm spinner Bhoir to leg; the ball perhaps came on slower than he anticipated, and the he gently chipped it to the man stationed at mid-on. B. Aparajith, the captain, walks in to bat.

It's 134 for 2. TN trails by 353 runs.

Kerala vs Punjab | And one more. Here's more from M. R. Praveen Chandran: It is getting interesting as Anmolpreet Singh is  out first ball, caught at backward short-leg by Baby off Jalaj. Punjab 39 for 4. Jalaj was on a hat-trick. Abhishek Sharma survives a shout for leg before to avert it.

Kerala vs Punjab | Here's M. R. Praveen Chandran: Captain Mandeep Singh (10) perishes while attempting a big shot off Jalaj and is caught by Nidheesh at midwicket. Punjab 39 for 3.

Saurashtra vs Karnataka | Karnataka is in trouble now, it's four down. Here's Ashwin Achal: Horrible shot by Deshpande. Cuts too close to the body, gives a sharp catch to Mankad at second slip. Mankad juggles it and latches on. Offie Makwana gets his first wicket. Have to question what Deshpande was thinking — trying to cut an offie with two slips in place.

Kerala vs Punjab | Punjab loses another. Here's M. R. Praveen Chandran: Sijomon strikes in his first over. Sanbir Singh bowled for 18. Punjab 20 for 2.

Rajasthan vs Gujarat | At the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur, Rajasthan has lost three wickets in the morning session: Mahipal Lomror, captain Robin Bist, and M. N. Singh have been dismissed. After 74 overs, the score: 180 for 4.

Rajasthan trails Gujarat by 145 runs.

Manipur vs Bihar | Eight wickets have fallen already in an eventful morning session in Balurghat. Manipur, resuming the day on 40 for 4, was bowled out for 94; it meant Bihar had a huge first-innings lead in the bag: 319 runs. Abhijeet took seven wickets.

Bihar enforced the follow-on, and Manipur, in its second innings, has now stumbled to 9 for 2, with both wickets going to Abhijeet.

Tripura vs Uttarakhand | Play hasn't begun at the MBB Stadium in Agartala, due to bad light. Tripura leads Uttarakhand by 14 runs, and has eight wickets in hand in the first innings.

Andhra vs Hyderabad | Andhra has stumbled as well, in the first session at the CSR Sharma College Ground in Ongole. It's lost three wickets, two more than they had in the entire day on Sunday. Prashanth Kumar (119, 306b, 15x4, 1x6) was dismissed by Ravi Kiran, and K. S. Bharat, who replaced him in the middle, didn't last very long, dismissed bowled by C. V. Milind.

After reaching a half-century, Hanuma Vihari, the captain, too, departed, for 55 (113b, 7x4).

It's 291 for 4 in the 116th over.

 

Kerala vs Punjab | Punjab loses a wicket with no run on the board. M. R. Praveen Chandran updates: Jalaj draws first blood. Punjab loses its first wicket. Rohan Marwaha tries a sweep, gets a leading edge and wicketkeeper Azhar takes an easy catch. Punjab 0 for 1.

The target: 145.

Arunachal Pradesh vs Nagaland | Arunachal Pradesh has added 93 runs in the morning session so far, at the Nagaland Cricket Stadium in Sovima. Three batsmen have been dismissed — Shashwat Kohli, Song Tacho, and Techi Neri.

Rahul Dalal has reached a century and is batting on 118 (139b, 17x4). Akhilesh Sahani (14 n.o., 29b, 3x4) is giving him company. After 65 overs bowling in the team's innings, the score is 234 for 7. It needs another 300 runs to level the scores.

TN vs Mumbai | Gandhi offers no stroke and tries to pad a delivery away. The bowler: left-arm spinner Shams Mulani. There's a loud shout for leg-before-wicket by the wicketkeeper Aditya Tare, but the umpire gestures to suggest the delivery wouldn't have gone on to hit the stumps.

Since Gandhi offered no stroke, the impact being outside the line of the off-stump would have been valid for an out dismissal. But the ball has to be hitting the stumps.

Assam vs Chhattisgarh | Assam needs nine more runs to claim the first-innings lead against Chhattisgarh at the ACA Stadium in Barsapara, Guwahati. Gokul Sharma (81 n.o., 241b, 9x4) and Saahil Jain (26 n.o., 36b, 6x4) have added 30 runs for the fifth wicket.

Riyan Parag was the last batsman to be dismissed, for 60.

Saurashtra vs Karnataka | Karnataka's top-order is faltering. It is three down now. Here's more fromAshwin Achal: Another wicket Unadkat. Siddharth pokes, keeper Snell takes the edge. Karnataka under pressure, in trouble at 44 for 3.

Kerala vs Punjab | Kerala is bowled out for 136. Nidheesh, who took seven wickets in the first innings, and Basil Thampi, don't last very long. The target for Punjab is 145.

Kaul gets five wickets.

Saurashtra vs Karnataka | Ashwin Achal, our correspondent, reports from Rajkot: Karnataka loses the first wicket of the day. Kadam pokes outside off to Unadkat, caught at slip. Kadam started well with a few lovely drives, but lost the plot with a loose shot.

Kerala vs Punjab | Kerala is eight down now, the innings is unravelling quickly. Jalaj Saxena was dismissed bowled by Siddarth Kaul, and soon after, Sijomon Joseph was dismissed bowled as well, by the same bowler. It's 116 for 8.

Kerala vs Punjab updates from M. R. Praveen Chandran: Azharuddeen's cameo ends as he misses an inswinger from Kaul and ball  shatters the stump. Kerala 108/6.

Tamil Nadu vs Mumbai: OUT! Deshpande draws first blood. The pacer angles a ball away from the Abhinav Munkund's offstump and gets a thick edge off the lefthander which Aditya Tare collects in the slips. Tamil Nadu 76/1.

Our correspondent M.R. Praveen Chandran updates Kerala vs Punjab: Azharuddeen starts with a flourish and hits two boundaries off Siddharth Kaul's first over. He hits Maan's first delivery for a big six and follows it up with a boundary. Kerala 107/5

Tamil Nadu vs Mumbai: FOUR! Abhinav Mukund begins the day with a glorious straight drive off Tushar Deshpande. TN 70/0, trail by 418 runs.

 

This is how the teams shape up after the end of the first day. We have our reporters at the venue and they will be sending us regular updates. So, stay tuned!

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