Khoda guides Rajasthan to shores of respectability

A Gagan Khoda hundred saw Rajasthan end the opening day of their five-day Ranji Trophy KnockOut against Bengal at a respectable 242 for five.

Playing at the KL Saini Ground, Jaipur, Rajasthan decided to bat after captain PK Krishnakumar won the toss. Khoda and the other opener, Vineet Saxena, had only put on 33 before Saxena was out lbw. The next two batsmen also departed early before Khoda found an able ally in his captain. The two put on a patient 143 runs for the fourth wicket before Krishnakumar was dismissed for a well-made 64 off 166 balls.

Khoda went on to raise his hundred in the company of Kuldeep Singh. He was looking good for many more when he run-out for 114 off 261 balls. The Rajasthan opener's hundred meant the home team had put themselves in line for a respectable total against the Rohan Gavaskar-led visiting team.

For Bengal, new-ball bowler Laxmi Rattan Shukla claimed two wickets. Kuldeep Singh, batting on 23, and wicket-keeper Rohit Jhalani, yet to open his account, were set to resume battle for Rajasthan on Thursday.

Debutant Malhotra scythes through Assam line-up

Hosts Punjab established early domination over Punjab at the end of the first day their match against Assam at the Punjab Cricket Association stadium at Mohali. First, they dismissed the visitors for a meagre 170 after inserting the latter in; this they followed up by racking up an impressive 130 for three in reply before stumps were drawn.

The star of the day, most obviously, was 17-year-old Ishan Malhotra, a right-arm fast bowler born in Jammu and Kashmir. He scythed through the Assam batting-order in an impressive bowling display that saw him return 7 for 59 in the 17 overs that he bowled. His new-ball partner H Puri, another debutant, also bowled commedably, chipping in with two wickets. Assam's plight would have been pathetic but for a 44 from wicket-keeper Syed Zuffri and a 33 from J Gokulakrishnan.

The Punjab reply got off to a great start with openers Ravneet Ricky and Manish Sharma putting on 64 runs before Sharma was out after a rapid-fire 50 off 64 balls. India discard Yuvraj, who followed, did not last for long. The home team captain Pankaj Dharmani also had to return after a brief stint when Gokulakrishanan trapped him in front of the wicket. Punjab, though, continue to remain in the driver's seat; Ricky is looking good on 46 and there is a fair bit of batting to follow with the Assam score on the horizon.

Pagnis ton boosts Railways

A century from opener Amit Pagnis saw Railways run up a healthy 291 for five at the end of the first day of their match against Delhi at the Karnail Singh Stadium, Delhi on Wednesday.

Raliways lost opener JP Yadav early after their skipper had opted to bat in the morning. But Pagnis and TP Singh then got together, putting on 143 runs for the second wicket. The departure of Singh, who made an aggressive 84, proved a temporary setback. Yere Goud though proved an able replacement. Pagnis duly completed his hundred making 132 off 213 balls with 21 fours and a six before falling to part-timer Mithun Manhas. Goud followed soon after being dismissed after a patient 34. When stumps were drawn, skipperAbhay Sharma and Murali Kartik were holding fort.

Bowlers dominate opening day of Tamil Nadu-Mumbai tie

The opening day of the Tamil Nadu-Mumbai encounter was not a happy one for the batsmen - as many as 14 of them fell with just 198 runs being scored.

In the morning, Tamil Nadu's joy at winning the toss quickly evaporated as batsmen after batsmen began the long trek back to the pavilion. Paras Mhambrey claimed two wickets while left-arm spinner Rajesh Pawar claimed four as the home team were skittled out for a paltry 182. Sridharan Sharath, who made 31, and skipper, who made 26 before being run-out, were the only two batsmen to offer any resistance.

Tamil Nadu's opening bowler Laxmipathy Balaji though brought his team back into the contest with three wickets for five runs in his 4.5 overs. Mumbai, then, were 16 of three at the end of the day.

Gujarat bat themselves into a strong position

Gujarat batted themselves into a strong position at the end of the opening day of their match against Andhra at the Sardar Patel Stadium, Motera, Ahmedabad.

After winning the toss, H Joshipura and ND Modi got the home team off to the best possible start. The duo piled on 224 runs for the first wicket before Modi was dismissed just eight short of what would have been a deserved century. Joshipura, who followed almost immediately, though had the satisfaction of notching 113 well-made and patient runs against his name. When stumps were drawn, NK Patel and skipper Mukund Parmar were batting on 11 and 7 respectively.

Hyderabad in commanding position against Himachal

Hyderabad had a satisfying opening day against Himachal Pradesh at the Gymkhana Ground, Secunderabad. The hosts dismissed the visitors for 192 runs before reaching an impressive 69 for no loss in reply.

In the morning, Himachal opted to bat. Opener Nischal Gaur, who made 99, played a lone hand as the home team bowlers led by Narendra Pal Singh ran through the remaining batsmen like knife through butter. Singh, who claimed five for 27, and Venkatapathy Raju, who claimed two wickets, were the pick of the home team bowlers.

The Hyderabad openers, Daniel Manohar and A Nand Kishore, then, consolidated the home team's position, batting soundly on their way to 28 and 39 respectively from 61 balls each.

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