Ranji Trophy Round 6, Group B: Shubman Gill Falls For Two-Ball Duck; Karnataka Keep MP In Check On Day 1

Shubman Gill’s return to Ranji Trophy ended in a two-ball duck as Saurashtra and Punjab batters struggled on a rank turner during the opening day of the Ranji Trophy Elite Group B match in Rajkot on Thursday.

Gill was trapped in front of the wicket by left-arm spinner Parth Bhut and other Punjab batters too did not fare better against tweakers.

Apart from Bhut, who took five wickets for 33 runs, veteran India spinner Ravindra Jadeja (2/48) and seasoned Dharmendra Jadeja (2/36) joined to wreck Punjab’s innings, dismissing them for 139.

The visitors conceded a first-innings lead of 33 runs after earlier bowling out Saurashtra for 172.

For Punjab, left-arm spinners Harpreet Brar (6/38) and Prerit Dutta (1/32) combined well with off-spinner Jass Inder (2/71) to rock the Saurashtra line-up.

However, Gill might have been highly disappointed after missing out on a good chance to reverse his recent trend of middling scores — just two fifties in the last 10 innings across Test, ODI, T20I and List A formats.

His India teammate Ravindra Jadeja too had an unhappy outing with the bat, falling for a six-ball seven to Inder.

Jay Gohil was the only batter on the day who showed some gumption to stand up to the spinners, making 82 off 117 balls (9x4, 3x6).

He played a rather aggressive knock, realising the folly of trying to defend and survive against slow bowlers on this pitch.

Saurashtra again fumbled in their second innings, losing three wickets for just 24 runs in six overs at stumps.

The home side now leads by 57 runs and it would not be a big surprise if the match ends on Day 2 itself, considering the nature of the track here.

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Saurashtra are currently fourth on the table with 13 points from five matches while Punjab are on sixth with 11 points from five matches.

Karnataka On Charge

The Group B leaders Karnataka enjoyed a good outing at the Alur (1) ground, restricting Madhya Pradesh to 244 for five at stumps.

For MP, Venkatesh Iyer made an 87 off 135 balls. Skipper Rajat Patidar, Himanshu Mantri and Shubham Sharma reached 30s but failed to get a move on.

For Karnataka, leg-spinner Shreyas Gopal and pacer Vysakh Vijayakumar took two wickets apiece.

Brief scores: At Rajkot: Saurashtra 172 all out; 47.1 overs (Jay Gohil 82, Prerak Mankad 32; Harpreet Brar 6/38) and 24/3 in 6 overs (Harpreet Brar 2/6). Punjab: 139 all out; 40.1 overs (Prabhsimran Singh 44, Anmolpreet Singh 35; Parth Bhut 5/33, Ravindra Jadeja 2/48, Dharmendra Jadeja 2/36).

At Alur: Madhya Pradesh: 244/5; 90 overs (Venkatesh Iyer 87, Rajat Patidar 30, Himanshu Mantri 39, Shubham Sharma 33; Shreyas Gopal 2/53, Vysakh Vijayakumar 2/51) vs Karnataka.

At Pune: Goa: 209 all out; 82.1 overs (Snehal Kauthankar 73; Jalaj Saxena 6/79). Maharashtra: 19 for no loss; 5 overs (Prithvi Shaw 13 batting, Arshin Kulkarni 2 batting).

At Mangalapuram: Kerala: 139 all out; 56 overs (Baba Aparajith 49, Sachin Baby 41; Nishunk Birla 4/40, Rohit Dhanda 3/27). Chandigarh: 142/1; 34 overs (Arjun Azad 78 not out, Manan Vohra 51 not out).