Bengal began their Ranji Trophy Group C campaign on a winning note, thrashing Delhi by nine wickets after bowling out the visitors for 277 in their second innings and chasing down a target of 89 on the fourth and final day on Wednesday. Resuming their second innings at 101 for three, Delhi managed 277 in 106.2 overs, with captain Ayush Badoni top-scoring with a gritty 85 off 134 balls, including 10 fours, while wicketkeeper-batter Anuj Rawat contributed 39 off 76 deliveries. Bengal, who had secured a substantial first-innings lead after posting 429 in reply to Delhi’s 240, needed just 15.3 overs to reach the target, finishing at 89 for one to seal a comprehensive victory.
The Group C match between Jharkhand and Kerala in Jamshedpur ended in a draw, with the home side earning three points for taking the first-innings lead.
Bengal began their Ranji Trophy Group C campaign on a winning note, thrashing Delhi by nine wickets after bowling out the visitors for 277 in their second innings and chasing down a target of 89 on the fourth and final day on Wednesday.
Chasing 89 for victory, Bengal lost Ankur Paul, who scored a brisk 38 off 41 balls, including two fours and a six. However, captain Easwaran remained unbeaten on 34 off 40 balls, while first-innings centurion Sudip Gharami finished unbeaten on 16 off 12 deliveries as Bengal completed the chase without further trouble. In Ahmedabad, left-arm spinner Siddharth Desai spun a web around the Odisha batters to power Gujarat to a commanding 10-wicket win in their Group C match, earning a bonus point and making a resounding start to their campaign. For Odisha, Sandeep Pattnaik top-scored with 65, while Ninad Rathva made 53. Left-arm pacer Arzan Nagwaswalla also contributed to Gujarat’s victory, taking six wickets in the match, including 3 for 33 in the second innings.
