Punjab responded well by reaching 121 for one at stumps on the second day, after an unbeaten 293 by Deepak Hooda took Baroda to 529 in the Ranji Trophy group-A league match at the Ferozeshah Kotla ground on Friday.
A watchful unbeaten 67 by opener Manan Vohra set the tempo for Punjab, after Jiwanjot Singh was bowled by Sagar Suresh Mangalorkar in the tenth over. With Uday Kaul (33), Manan has already put on 88 runs for the second wicket.
A lot will depend on how Punjab plays over the Deepavali week-end, after the disappointment of losing the last match outright to Bengal.
Staying at the bottom of the table in the nine-team group, former champion Baroda with two points from as many matches, needed something solid to give itself a better chance for more points from this encounter.
Called the Haryana hurricane, a nickname once used for Kapil Dev, the Baroda batsman from Rohtak, the 21-year-old Deepak Hooda, put his team in a strong position, as he took his score from 190 overnight to 293, Baroda has a lot to play.
Deepak faced 354 balls and struck 25 fours and six sixes. His previous best was 142. His sixth first class century, in only the tenth time he crossed 50, has the potential to be a memorable one for his team, if the bowlers, Munaf Patel and company, capitalise on the solid platform.
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