Arzan, Chintan script Gujarat’s win over TN

Ahmedabad: Arzan Nagwaswalla bowled his heart out as Gujarat defeated Tamil Nadu by 111 runs in their Ranji Trophy Group C game in Valsad on Monday. The victory gave Gujarat six points. Tamil Nadu, who resumed the fourth day's play at 32 for two chasing a tough target of 299, were shot out for 187. Arzan Nagwaswalla (4/34) was the pick of the Gujarat bowlers, while skipper Chintan Gaja took three for 34. Gaja dismissed overnight batter Sai Sudarshan (18) with the total on 34 early in the morning. It was a big blow for Tamil Nadu’s chances to win the match. Tamil Nadu skipper Sai Kishore (48), Baba Indrajith (39) and Pradosh Ranjan Paul (39 not out) were only able to delay the inevitable.In Vadodara, Baroda started their Ranji Trophy season with a win over Odisha in a Group D match. Odisha resumed the day on 103 for one in their second innings, chasing a massive 432-run target. The overnight batters Shantanu Mishra and Sandeep Pattnaik defied the Baroda bowlers for long. But once Pattnaik (51) departed with the total at 184, the Odisha’s resistance seemed to end. They lost three more wickets in next six over adding only eight to the total. A counterattacking 46 by Suryakant Pradhan only delayed the inevitable. Spinner Mahesh Pithiya took five for 61.In Rajkot, Jharkhand batters defied the Saurashtra attack on day four of their match. On Monday, Jharkhand resumed play on 140 for two and Kumar Deobrat (91) and Kumar Suraj took the score to 183 when Deobrat departed. Skipper Virat Singh then joined Suraj in the middle and the two remained unbeaten on 51 and 113 respectively to save the match for their team. The drawn match gave Saurashtra three points, while Jharkhand had to settle for one.