The Ranji Trophy witnessed an exhilarating contest as Round 2 wrapped up on Monday after an intense four-day match. Day 4 highlighted the brilliance of two players: the seasoned Cheteshwar Pujara, who scored a century for Saurashtra, and the emerging talent Abdul Samad, who dazzled for Jammu & Kashmir with a brilliant century in the second innings.
India’s hopefuls for the upcoming tour to Australia also shone brightly, with Shreyas Iyer, Ishan Kishan, and Ruturaj Gaikwad each smashing centuries for their teams. However, Bengal’s promising batsman, Abhimanyu Easwaran, faced disappointment as the Bengal vs. Bihar match was abandoned on the final day due to unfit ground conditions at Kayani (Kolkata) without having the toss.
Double century for Pujara
Cheteshwar Pujara showcased his vintage style by scoring a superb double-century against Chhattisgarh. This marked Pujara’s 18th first-class hundred as he faced a daunting total of 578-7 declared by Chhattisgarh in their first innings. Coming in after the dismissal of Harvik Desai, Pujara formed a solid 109-run partnership with Sheldon Jackson, followed by an impressive 147-run partnership with Arpit Vasavada, who contributed 73 runs. Ultimately, the match ended in a draw, with both teams managing just to play one inning each over the four days.
History made by Abdul Samad
Abdul Samad, the rising star from Sunrisers Hyderabad, etched his name in history on October 21 by becoming the first batter from Jammu & Kashmir to score multiple centuries in a single Ranji Trophy match. The 22-year-old right-hander accomplished this feat during Jammu & Kashmir’s ongoing Elite Group A match against Odisha at Barabati Stadium in Cuttack.
Samad racked up 127 runs from 117 balls in the first innings and followed it up with an unbeaten 108 off 108 balls in the second innings. His explosive performance included six fours and nine sixes in the first inning and five fours alongside six maximums in the second. Thanks to his phenomenal batting display, J&K declared their second innings at 270 runs, setting Odisha a challenging target of 269. However, Odisha could only muster 112 runs for the loss of 8 wickets as the match concluded.
Gujarat’s nail-biting victory
In another thrilling encounter, Gujarat narrowly defeated Andhra by just one wicket in Ahmedabad on Monday. Chasing a target of 143, Gujarat found themselves relying on a knock of 16 runs from No. 10 Arzan Nagwaswalla to secure the victory. The chase initially gained momentum through the efforts of Jaymeet Patel and Chinthan Gaja, but Andhra’s left-arm spinner Lalith Mohan turned the tide with a stunning seven-wicket haul, making the victory all the more exhilarating for Gujarat.
Ranji Trophy Round 2 Day 4 Brief results:
- Uttarakhand beat Hyderabad by 78 runs
- Mizoram beat Arunachal Pradesh by 267 runs
- Goa beat Sikkim by an innings and 53 runs
- Gujarat beat Andhra by 1 wicket
- Karnataka vs Kerala – Draw (first-innings unfinished)
- Nagaland beat Manipur by 147 runs
- Mumbai beat Maharashtra by 9 wickets
- Delhi vs TN – Draw (TN took first-innings lead)
- Chandigarh beat Assam by nine wickets
- Tripura beat Meghalaya by an innings and 17 runs
- Vidarbha beat Pondicherry by 120 runs
- Baroda beat Services by 65 runs
- Rajasthan beat Himachal Pradesh by 8 wickets
- Bengal vs Bihar – Abandoned
- Saurashtra vs Chhattisgarh – Draw (first-innings unfinished)
- Odisha vs J&K – Draw (Odisha took first-innings lead)
- UP vs Haryana – Draw (Haryana took first-innings lead)
- Punjab vs Madhya Pradesh – Draw (Punjab took first-innings lead)
- Railways vs Jharkhand – Draw (Jharkhand took first-innings lead)
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