*Sridharan Sharath puts Tamil Nadu on course for victory

An unbeaten century from Sridharan Sharath saw Tamil Nadu declare at 396/5 on Day Three of their Ranji Trophy league match at Chennai on Monday.

Sharath, resuming from his overnight score of 12, lost his partner, skipper Robin Singh, but then found able support in TR Arasu (55*). Batting with his usual elan, Sharath made 141 off 252 balls, with 18 fours and a six. The pair put on 190 runs for the sixth wicket.

Hoping to force an outright victory, Tamil Nadu declared and then had Goa reeling at 92/4 by the close of play. L Balaji took four wickets for 36 runs, and only first-innings hero Kiran Powar was able to stave off the bowling onslaught.

Needing 66 runs just to avoid an innings defeat, Goa will be hard- pressed to ensure a draw, let alone an outright win in their first Ranji tie of the season.

*Faiq gives Andhra a chance at victory

After taking five wickets in the first innings, Mohammad Faiq scalped four batsmen in Kerala's second essay, giving Andhra Pradesh a realistic shot at victory in their Ranji Trophy league match at Cochin on Monday.

Andhra Pradesh, overnight on 234/8, lost their last two wickets for the addition of only 25 runs. Kerala, however, could not capitalise on their fine bowling effort. Apart from Sreekumar Nair, who made an unbeaten 46, none of the batsmen could stay at the crease long enough to post a decent total.

Wickets fell at regular intervals and, at the close of play, Kerala were 131/7, with Nair and KN Ananthapadmanabhan at the crease.

*Jammu & Kashmir set a steep target

Chasing a nigh-impossible 469 for victory, Jammu & Kashmir found themselves at 128/3 on Day Three of their Ranji Trophy league match against Delhi at the Feroze Shah Kotla grounds in Delhi.

The home side, overnight on 46/1, were propelled to a good total of 316/4, a score that enabled them to declare and push for a win. Skipper Mithun Manhas, batting first with Pradeep Chawla (52) and then with Sohail Rauf (81) made 128 off just 132 balls, with 18 fours and one six.

The Delhi batsmen scored their runs in a hurry, with the 316 coming off 59 overs in just 242 minutes, leaving the visiting bowling hapless. Jammu & Kashmir were, at the close of play, staring down the barrel at 128/3. Kavaljit Singh on 54 and Guru Pratap Singh on 6 were the batsmen at the crease.

*Sangram Singh piles on the runs

Helping his team surpass Services' first-innings total, Sangram Singh made an unbeaten 215, enabling Himachal Pradesh to declare at 463/5 on Day Three of their Ranji Trophy league match at Una.

Batting with a stodgy Rajiv Nayyar, who made 90 off 289 balls, Sangram Singh hit 26 fours and four sixes in his 308-ball, 405-minute knock. He was the dominant partner in stands with Varinder Sharma, Amit Sharma and Chetan Kumar, none of whom even crossed 20.

Services, now effectively unable to push for a win, were 25 for no loss at stumps on Monday, with openers PMS Reddy and K Chawda at the crease.

*Punjab take a big first-innings lead

Bowled out for 318, Punjab took a first-innings lead of 114 runs in their Ranji Trophy league match against Haryana at Gurgaon on Monday.

Ankur Kakkar, batting overnight on 81, fell just three runs short of a well-deserved century, becoming the eighth wicket to fall. His departure hastened the end of the Punjab innings, which only lasted five overs more.

Haryana, beginning their second innings badly with the fall of one opener early, then consolidated to some extent. The middle-order batsmen, although able to get a start, could not take it further, and the side found themselves on 173/6 at the close of play on Day Three, with skipper Parender Sharma (21*) and S Vidyut (23*) at the crease.

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