New Delhi, Oct 26 (IANS) Veteran India batter Ajinkya Rahane struck a gritty 159 to guide Mumbai to 406/8 on a rain-hit day two of their Ranji Trophy Elite Group D match against Chhattisgarh at the BKC Ground on Sunday.

Rahane, who had retired hurt on 118 due to cramps on day one, resumed his innings and went on to face 303 deliveries. He hit 21 boundaries before being caught behind off veteran left-arm spinner Aditya Sarwate, who finished with figures of 4-103.

Mumbai resumed play at 251/5 with limited overs available due to frequent rain interruptions. After Rahane, wicketkeeper-batter Akash Anand remained solid for Mumbai by being unbeaten on 60 off 148 balls, while Tushar Deshpande was not out on four at stumps, taken early due to heavy rain. With more rain forecasted on Monday, it would be interesting to see how many overs’ play is done on day three.

Meanwhile, at the Arun Jaitley Stadium, Delhi tightened their grip over Himachal Pradesh by posting a commanding 430 in the first innings and then reducing the visitors to 165/3 by stumps, with the hosts still having a lead of 265 runs.

Despite none of the batters converting their fifties into centuries, Delhi’s top and middle order contributed consistently, thanks to Arpit Rana (64), Sanat Sangwan (79), Yash Dhull (61), Ayush Doseja (75), Sumit Mathur (51), and Anuj Rawat (57).

In reply, Himachal opener Sidhant Purohit showed solidness with his knock of 70 off 165 balls, but Delhi continued to chip in with scalps. Pacer Navdeep Saini dismissed Purohit and Ankit Kalsi, while spin-bowling all-rounder Sumit Mathur accounted for skipper Ankush Bains.

At the Sher-e-Kashmir Stadium, Jammu and Kashmir took firm control by reducing Rajasthan to 41/5 at stumps in their second innings, with the visitors still trailing by 89 runs.

Rajasthan had earlier folded for 152 in response to J&K’s first-innings total of 282, giving the hosts a 132-run lead. Pace-bowling all-rounder Auqib Nabi starred with the ball in the second innings by picking five wickets for just five runs in six overs.

At the Cricket Association Pondicherry Siechem Ground, hosts Puducherry ended day two’s at 25/1 in reply to Hyderabad’s imposing first-innings total of 435. Puducherry trail by 410 runs heading into day three’s play.

Skipper Rahul Singh Gahlaut top-scored with 114, while Tanmay Agarwal (50), Kodimela Himateja (66), and Rahul Radesh (81) all chipped in to give Hyderabad a strong platform.

Ranji Trophy Elite Group D Brief Scores

Mumbai 406/8 in 130 overs (Ajinkya Rahane 159, Siddhesh Lad 80; Aditya Sarwate 4-103, Ravi Kiran 3-53) against Chhattisgarh.

Delhi 430 in 116 overs (Sanat Sangwan 79, Ayush Doseja 75; Vaibhav Arora 4-78, Arpit Guleria 4-106) lead Himachal Pradesh 165/3 in 55 overs (Sidhant Purohit 70; Navdeep Saini 2-20) by 265 runs.

Jammu & Kashmir 282 (Abdul Samad 76, Yudhvir Singh 53; Deepak Chahar 4-39, Ankit Chaudhary 3-65) lead Rajasthan 152 & 41/5 in 20 overs (Deepak Hooda 17 not out; Auqib Nabi 5-5) by 89 runs.

Hyderabad 435 in 134.5 overs (Rahul Singh Gahlaut 114, Rahul Radesh 81; Sagar Udeshi 4-110) lead Puducherry 25/1 in nine overs (Anand Bais 14 not out; B Punnaiah 1-4) by 410 runs.

-–IANS

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