The third round of Ranji Trophy 2024 witnessed contrasting fortunes for different players and teams, with established star Cheteshwar Pujara struggling while newcomer Agni Chopra continued his meteoric rise. As for defending champions Mumbai, their lower-order came up with handy contributions against Tripura. Without the likes of Suryakumar Yadav, Shreyas Iyer, Sarfaraz Khan and Musheer Khan, Mumbai managed to score 450 runs, with Shardul Thakur hitting fifty. For Baroda, their skipper Krunal Pandya is gruelling in an intense battle at 88* against Odisha.
Flop show for Cheteshwar Pujara
Despite recent discussions about his exclusion from India’s squad for the upcoming Australia series, Cheteshwar Pujara failed to make an impact for Saurashtra against Railways. Coming off a double century against Chhattisgarh, Pujara managed just 2 runs before falling to Akash Pandey, leaving his team in trouble at 83/5. Saurashtra, in response to Railways’ first innings total of 234, were bundled out for 196, conceding a 38-run lead. Railways, however, found themselves in trouble in their second innings, struggling at 97/7.
Dream run for Agni Chopra continues
Mizoram’s Agni Chopra continued his extraordinary form in the Plate Group, smashing 218 runs off 269 balls against Manipur at the Gokulbhai Somabhai Patel Stadium in Nadiad. The 26-year-old left-hander, son of filmmaker Vidhu Vinod Chopra, struck 29 boundaries and a six in his masterclass, recording his second consecutive double hundred following his unbeaten 238 against Arunachal Pradesh. With 646 runs in just five innings, Chopra leads the 2024 Ranji Trophy scoring charts by a significant margin, maintaining a ‘Bradman-esque’ first-class average of 99.01.
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J&K Pacers demolish Services in dominant win
Jammu & Kashmir showcased their bowling prowess with a commanding innings and 25-run victory over Services in Srinagar. The pace duo of Umar Nazir (6/53) and Yudhvir Singh (3/35) wreaked havoc in the second innings, dismissing Services for just 132 runs in 32 overs. Yudhvir finished with impressive match figures of 8/52, helping J&K secure their first win of the season after two draws. The victory was particularly special as it came in well under two days of play.
Ranji Trophy Day 2 Round 3 Brief Scores
- Baroda vs Odisha – ODI 193 all-out | BAR 354/6
- J&K vs Services – J&K won by an innings and 25 runs
- Maharashtra vs Meghalaya – MEG 276 all-out | MAH 263/5
- Rajasthan vs Gujarat – GUJ 335 all-out | RAJ 180/5
- Hyderabad vs Pondicherry – HYD 536/8d | PND 24/2
- Uttarakhand vs Vidarbha – VID 326 all-out | UTT 242/7
- Madhya Pradesh vs Haryana – MP 308 all-out | HAR 185/3
- Punjab vs UP – PUN 210 all-out | UP 293/3
- Delhi vs Assam – ASM 330 all-out | DEL 214/6
- TN vs Chhattisgarh – CHG 500 all-out | TN 23/1
- Saurashtra vs Railways – RLY 234 all-out & 122/7 | SAU 196 all-out
- Arunachal Pradesh vs Sikkim – SKM 424 all-out | ARU 244/3
- Goa vs Nagaland – GOA 179 all-out & 177/5 | NAG 147 all-out
- Manipur vs Mizoram – MIZ 536 all-out | MNP 105/4
- Andhra vs Himachal Pradesh – AND 344 all-out | HP 198/4
- Bihar vs Karnataka – BIH 143 all-out | KAR 16/0
- Jharkhand vs Chandigarh – JHA 202 all-out | CHG 34/0
- Tripura vs Mumbai – MUM 450 all-out | TRI 60/1
- Bengal vs Kerala – KER 51/4
