Punjab captain Shubman Gill failed to deliver on his return to Ranji Trophy and got dismissed for a two-ball duck against Saurashtra. The 26-year-old had surprisingly come out to bat at the fifth position, but got completely bamboozled by spinner Parth Bhut. Gill failed to trouble the scores and his wicket left Punjab on 73/4.
The Punjab batters struggled on the crease from the get-go as opener Harnoor Singh got dismissed for a duck by Jaydev Unadkat in the first over. Prabhsimran Singh looked to be in good touch, but didn't get much support from the other end as Uday Saharan lost his wicket for 23 runs while Nehal Wadhera got sent back to the dugout for just six.
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Gill came out to bat when Punjab were in need for a strong partnership, but he failed to provide them with one and his brief stay at the crease was brought to an end by Bhut. Things only ended up getting worse for Punjab as Dharmendrasinh Jadeja clinched the wicket of Prabhsimran for 44 runs on the very next delivery.
Lower-order crumbles as well
Anmolpreet Singh tried to steady the innings and played a valiant knock of 35 runs before eventually being dismissed by Bhut. The wicket left Punjab on 119/6 and it would also trigger a late collapse as the remaining four batters got dismissed for a space of just 20 runs. Ravindra Jadeja claimed the wickets of two of them as Gill & Co. got bundled out for just 139 runs in their first innings. Bhut proved to be the star performer in the bowling department, recording figures of 5/33.
Saurashtra take important lead
Earlier in the day, Saurashtra had been bowled out for 172 runs in their first innings. Jay Gohil had carried the team to a respectable total with his valiant knock of 82 while Prerak Mankad had also played an impactful cameo of 32. Harpreet Brar bowled a stunning spell of 6/38 as Punjab wrapped up a brilliant bowling effort. Despite not posting a massive total on the board, Saurashtra managed to take 33-run lead ahead of their second innings thanks to their bowlers.