Gujarat all but through after Gohel's 261*

JAIPUR: Monday, at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium here, was all about one man Samit Gohel. All talk hovered around his unbeaten 261 his first double in first-class cricket and the manner in which he hit those 33 fours and a six.
Gohel's double ton virtually took Gujarat into the semifinals as they ended Day Four at 514 for 8 against Odisha. They are now 578 ahead, and the last day's play would just be a formality.
The first question Gohel ­ who has already played 555 balls ­ faced after the day's play was: Are you tired? "Not really.I feel fresh. I am not thinking about a 300. I am taking it session by session," he told TOI.
So, what changed after the first day's play when Gujarat were tottering at 71 for 6? "On Friday, the wicket was wet but as it started to dry up, it became better for batting. We had played our first game this season against Baroda in Jaipur. So we knew the wicket would get better for batting as the match wore on. We had a good partnership between Rush (Kalaria) and Chirag (Gandhi) and then Jaspreet (Bumrah) bowled a brilliant spell. We always believed that we could get them out for less than what we had scored," the 26-year-old right-hander from Anand said.
On Monday, Gujarat scored 268 runs and the other score of significance was 40 scored by captain Parthiv Patel. Odisha's Dhiraj Singh got a five-wicket haul 5 for 139 for his left-arm spin but he would have been happier had it come on a better day for Odisha.
Brief Scores: Gujarat 263, 514/8 (Samit Gohel 261 not out, Priyank Panchal 81, Parthiv Patel 40, Dhiraj Singh 5/139) vs Odisha 199.