Report

Red-hot Gony flattens HP

A round-up of the second day's play of the fifth-round matches of the Ranji Trophy Super League 2009-10

Cricinfo staff
02-Dec-2009
Manpreet Gony's second five-for in the match helped Punjab close in on victory against Himachal Pradesh in Mohali  •  ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Manpreet Gony's second five-for in the match helped Punjab close in on victory against Himachal Pradesh in Mohali  •  ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Group A

Himachal Pradesh 197 (Indulkar 60, Gony 5-47) and 82 (Gony 5-21) lead Punjab 186 (Kaul 50, Malik 5-68) by 93 runs
Scorecard
Manpreet Gony has been in red-hot form and his second five-for in the match helped Punjab close in on victory against Himachal Pradesh (HP) in Mohali. It's turning out to be a peculiar predicament for HP as yet again they let the initiative slip having secured a first-innings lead. Vikramjeet Malik was once again at the forefront of the demolition job as Punjab were bundled out for 186, having begun the day on 37 for 2. In fact, the HP seamers kept up the pressure, as Malik ended with a five-for and Ashok Thakur and Jitender Mehta shared the remaining wickets. Punjab would have been optimistic of overhauling HP's first-innings score of 186, but apart from wicketkeeper Uday Kaul, none of the batsmen could step up to the challenge. Disaster struck during HP's second essay, as Love Ablish picked up two early wickets, laying the platform again for Gony, who tore through the middle and lower orders. Four ducks did not help the cause as legspinner Rahul Sharma chipped in with two wickets. Gony's thundering performance with the ball ensured a new innings lowest for HP, having scored 89 against the same opposition in Jalandhar, back in 1985-86.
Railways 327 for 5 (Bangar 109, Goud 62*) lead Gujarat 91 (Bangar 3-17, Saxena 3-19) by 236 runs
Scorecard
Sanjay Bangar scored his 11th first-class century as Railways dominated against Gujarat on the second day in Valsad. Resuming on 61 for 1, the overnight batsmen Bangar and wicketkeeper V Cheluvaraj added 86 more, before Salil Yadav had Cheluvaraj caught short of his fifty. Bangar continued strongly, putting on 69 with TP Singh (46), and bringing up his hundred in the process, hitting 20 fours en route. Railways were further lifted by Yere Goud's watchful half-century, and the unbeaten sixth-wicket stand of 78 with Marripuri Suresh. With the lead nearing 250, Railways might declare early and look to repeat the bowling performance that flattened Gujarat during their first innings.
Orissa 173 for 1 (Shiv Sunder 71*, Behera 88*) trail Tamil Nadu 361 (Karthik 118, Ganapthy 72, Dhiraj 4-109) by 188 runs
Scorecard
Unbeaten half-centuries from captain Shiv Sunder Das and Niranjan Behera helped Orissa gain the advantage against Tamil Nadu in Sambalpur. Tamil Nadu would have been disappointed not to improve on their overnight score of 323 for 5, as the last five wickets fell for 38 runs. Left-arm spinner Dhiraj Singh added two more wickets to his overnight tally to finish as Orissa's most successful bowler, while Alok Chandra Sahoo chipped in with two. Orissa lost Bikas Pati off the first ball of the reply, lbw to Chandrasekar Ganapathy, but the unbroken 173-run second-wicket stand between Shiv Sunder and Behera, put paid to any hopes that Tamil Nadu might have had of denting the hosts further. Both knocks were full of intent as Shiv Sunder smashed 11 fours and a six, while Behera hit 16 fours.
Click here for Siddarth Ravindran's report from the Hyderabad-Mumbai match.

Group B

Baroda 137 for 9 (Irfan 52*, Vinay Kumar 3-23, Mithun 3-52) trail Karnataka 488 (Pandey 110, Satish 94, Binny 66) by 351 runs
Scorecard
A disciplined bowling performance form the Karnataka bowlers meant they were on the verge of first-innings points against Baroda at the Moti Bagh Stadium. In fact, the visitors are likely to impose the follow-on, after 16 wickets fell on the second day. Beginning the day on 335 for 3, Manish Pandey brought up his second first-class century even as Ganesh Satish missed out. ICL returnee Stuart Binny ensured the momentum stayed with the visitors as he carved out a composed half-century. Right-arm seamer Murtuja Vahora's late strikes meant Karnataka were bowled out in the 48th over of the day, with wicketkeeper Pinal Shah completing five catches. Baroda's reply looked shaky from the onset as R Vinay Kumar and Abhimanyu Mithun bowled incisively. Irfan Pathan played the lone hand in a sorry batting card, hitting seven fours and two sixes en route to an unbeaten half-century. Vinay Kumar and Mithun finished with three wickets apiece, while Sreesanth Aravind and Sunil Joshi shared the remaining. The bowlers will be eager to pick up the lone wicket that remains and have another go at the opposition tomorrow.
Maharashtra 292 (Praveen 6-68) and 102 for 2 (Khadiwale 54) lead Uttar Pradesh 208 (Kaif 65, Adhav 5-24) by 186 runs
Scorecard
It was heartening news for bottom-placed Maharashtra as they took command against Uttar Pradesh at the Pune Club Ground. Left-arm spinner Kiran Ramling Adhav was at the centre of the action, and his five-wicket haul ensured that the hosts picked up first-innings points. Having bowled out Maharashtra the day before, UP took fresh guard, but left-arm seamer Samad Fallah took out two of the top three batsmen to leave them shaky at 52 for 3. Captain Mohammad Kaif and Parvinder Singh teamed up for a fourth-wicket stand of 99, with Kaif reaching his fifty. But once Adhav bowled Parvinder, the match shifted in favour of the hosts as he repeatedly dented the middle and lower orders. UP eventually succumbed in the 60th over of the day, 84 adrift of Maharashtra's first-innings score. Captain Harshad Khadiwale led from the front during the second innings with a fluent fifty, but even with two wickets down Maharashtra will be eyeing crucial points as they look avoid the drop to the Plate League.
Delhi 262 for 7 (Bisht 49*, Odedra 5-71) trail Saurashtra 328 (Pathak 138, Pujara 83) by 66 runs
Scorecard
The match between Delhi and Saurashtra at the Roshanara Club Ground was tantalisingly poised at stumps with both teams vying for first-innings points. Beginning on 22 for no loss, in pursuit of Saurashtra's first-innings total of 328, the Delhi batsmen failed to convert their starts with right-arm seamer Jayesh Odedra striking crucial blows to repeatedly tilt the balance. A string of thirties from the top order looked to get Delhi on track, but Odedra's five-for along with fellow fast bowler Sandip Maniar's two wickets drew the visitors back into the game. With three wickets in hand, Delhi's fortunes rest with wicketkeeper Puneet Bisht who closed in on a well-deserved half-century, though Saurashtra's bowlers will look to go in for the kill early.