Uday Kaul

Uday Kaul isn't as flamboyant and soothing to eye as the other southpaws but to play 100 first-class matches with a batting average of 47.44 and last 14 years in a competitive Indian circuit takes special ability.

Uday Kaul and Mandeep Singh struck half centuries as Punjab reached 216 for 4 on the opening day of their Group A Ranji Trophy match against Mumbai here today.

The senior selection committee of Punjab Cricket Association picked a 20-member one-day squad for upcoming assignments.

Young batsman Jiwanjot Singh struck his eighth first class century to help Punjab salvage a draw against Gujarat in their Ranji Trophy Group A match on Friday.

Medium-pacer Jagjit Singh Sandhu made up for his poor ground fielding with a late burst with the ball on the opening day of their Plate Group match against Sikkim at the Sector 16 cricket stadium, taking four wickets.

Tamil Nadu earned three points from their Group A Ranji Trophy match against Punjab on the basis of first innings lead in a game that ended in a tame draw on the final day here.

What's the situation of the Punjab-Andhra match? That was Chandigarh wicketkeeper-batsman Uday Kaul's first reaction after slamming an unbeaten double century to propel the hosts within sniffing distance of an outright victory over Mizoram.

Bengal scored a first innings total of 404 before reducing Punjab to 168 for four at stumps on day two of their Group A Ranji Trophy encounter.

At 188 for 6, hosts Chandigarh was looking in trouble and staring at conceding a first innings lead against minnows Sikkim on Day 2 of their Plate Group Ranji Trophy match at the Sector 16 stadium. But all that changed when all-rounder Gurinder Singh walked in.

Seasoned professionals Uday Kaul and Bipul Sharma were among the 37 probables named for the upcoming preparatory camp, starting Wednesday at the Sector 16 Stadium in Chandigarh. The list of probables expectedly had two notable omissions in star pacer Shresth Nirmohi and promising batsman Raman Bishnoi, who had tested positive for Covid-19 on Monday, and are set to be retested on Saturday.

The selectors' logic on Irfan Pathan, who been named in the 15-member squad for the Irani Cup, is nothing but baffling.

Uday Kaul has been on a roll since that unbeaten double century in the previous game against Mizoram and the veteran wicketkeeper-batsman once again displayed his class with a brilliant unbeaten century to bail Chandigarh out of a troubled start and post 352 for 5 at stumps on the opening day of their Ranji Trophy Plate Group match against Manipur here on Wednesday.

Nagaland rode on veteran wicketkeeper-batter Chetan Bist's all-round show to down Sikkim by six wickets in their Ranji Trophy plate group opener on Sunday. The former Rajasthan glovesman slammed 115 and took eight catches behind the stumps as Nagaland chased down 174 in 40 overs to pocket six points.

Chandigarh skipper Manan Vohra turned on the heat for Nagaland with a quickfire unbeaten century, his second of the ongoing Ranji Trophy, to propel the visitors to a strong 263 for 3 at stumps on the second day of the tie at Sovima near Dimapur on Saturday.

A solid knock of 170 from southpaw Praful Waghela enabled Tata Sports Club to take vital first innings lead of 198 runs over Central Railway.

The Chandigarh team will take on Arunachal Pradesh at the Sector 16 cricket stadium in their maiden Ranji Trophy match on Monday in a dream that will be fulfilled after 40 years following the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) granting affiliation to the Union Territory Cricket Association (UTCA) a few months back.

Harbhajan Singh was named the captain of the Punjab Ranji Trophy team that will take on Tamil Nadu, to be played at Nagpur from 21-24.

Into their second domestic season, Chandigarh will get first-hand experience of playing in the Elite Group, when they open their Vijay Hazare Trophy campaign against neighbours Haryana in a Group E clash in Kolkata on Sunday.

Opener Jiwanjot Singh struck double-century and Anmolpreet Singh hit a ton as Punjab reached 396 for two on the opening day of their Group D Ranji Trophy match against Goa on Tuesday.

"The youngsters are doing well in T20Is and ODIs but they should get more opportunity at the first class level like the Ranji Trophy," said Cheteshwar Pujara.