Bengal, Karnataka enter quarters; Delhi knocked out
With two teams qualifying, all five spots from Elite Group A and B sealed
nNEW DELHI: Delhi and Vidarbha closing in on bonus point victories mattered little as Bengal and Karnataka notched victories to move into top five on Day 3 of the last round of the Ranji Trophy league phase. With Karnataka and Bengal’s knockouts qualification, all five spots from the combined Elite Group A & B are sealed. Gujarat, Saurashtra and Andhra are the other teams through from the top bracket.
Bengal and Karnataka scripted contrasting wins respectively to qualify for the quarter-finals on Friday. Punjab, needing 190 runs for victory, fluffed their run chase to be bowled out for 141, handing Bengal a 48-run victory. Spinners dominated the game with Bengal left-arm spinner Shahbaz Ahmed picking up four wickets in the second innings to take his match haul to 11.
Resuming on 199 for nine, Bengal scored only three runs to set Punjab a 190-run target. It turned out to be enough in a lowscoring game as Punjab were bowled out in 47. 3 overs. Ramandeep Singh (69 not out off 104) ran out of partners in the end. Bengal gained six points from the win, pushing them on the top of the standings.
In Bengaluru, Karnataka advanced to the quarter-finals with an eight-wicket win over Baroda. It was an improved batting effort from Baroda in the second innings after being shot out for 85 on day one. They ended their second innings at 296 all out, setting Karnataka a 149-run target, which the hosts reached in 44.4 overs with the loss of just two wickets. Karnataka skipper Karun Nair took the team over the line with an unbeaten 71 off 126 balls.
Bengal now top the Elite Group A & B table with 32 points, followed by Karnataka who have 31 points now. Both have completed their quota of eight matches. Matches involving Gujarat (29), Saurashtra (28) and Andhra (27) are yet to be decided. The top five from this group will advance to the knockouts. Punjab finished on 24 points while Uttar Pradesh (20) have no chance of making the cut. Jammu & Kashmir and Odisha have already qualified from Elite Group C while Goa have qualified from the Plate Group.
MENARIA HITS TON
At best, Delhi or Vidarbha (both on 18 points) can fight for the sixth position. Delhi, who had scalped four of Rajasthan’s first innings wickets at the Ferozeshah Kotla on Thursday evening, were stretched by Ashok Menaria, the opposition skipper, who made a composed century. The left-handed batsman, who led India U-19s in the 2010 World Cup, has seen two of his mates from that batch, KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal make the India team cut.
He, however, has struggled to graduate, just like the 2012 U-19 World Cup-winning skipper Unmukt Chand, partly because of the mess Rajasthan Cricket Association have found themselves in and mainly because he has failed to produce big scores. This season too he had just three fifties and a hundred before coming into this match. But on a placid Kotla surface on Friday, the like of which he confessed he hasn’t seen for years, he stayed calm and didn’t waste his wicket, scoring a 189-ball 119.
Delhi’s spinners were found wanting as they struggled to flight and turn the ball while the field placements lacked imagination and were too defensive. And Menaria made full use. He was well supported by the lower order batsmen who chipped in with small contributions. “I should have done better in my career, but after a resounding start to my career I failed to have a consistent run. I had no one to guide though I was to be the fulcrum of the batting. There was plenty of advice but I didn’t know which one to take,” admitted Menaria.
It hasn’t helped that Rajasthan have been getting some bowling friendly wickets over the past few years while their association had been struggling with issues. Rajasthan, after being dismissed for 299 were made to follow on and produced a good start despite losing one of their batsmen—yash Kothari— to injury inflicted by a bouncer from Simarjeet Singh. They were 128/2 at stumps, still 196 behind. Menaria is yet to bat in the second essay.
Brief scores:
In Patiala: Bengal 138 & 202 bt
Punjab 151 & 141 (R Singh 69*, S
Ahmed 4/44) by 48 runs. Bengal 6, Punjab 0.
In Bengaluru: Baroda 85 & 296. Karnataka 233 & 150/2 (K Nair 71*). Karnataka won by 8 wkts. Karnataka 6, Baroda 0.
In Nadiad: Andhra 177 & 216/7 (KK Shinde 64, B Sumanth 47, A Patel 5/77) v Gujarat 406.
In Delhi: Delhi 623. Rajasthan 299 & 128/2 (M Lomror 64*).
In Rajkot: Tamil Nadu 424. Saurashtra 346/6 (A Barot 82, A Vasavada 126*)