Delhi pacer Navdeep Saini bowled a sharp opening spell to keep Delhi interested in the possibility of an outright win but finally managed three points against Chattisgarh in their opening group D Ranji Trophy match. In form, Jonty Sidhu's second career first-class hundred had ensured a slender first-innings lead for Delhi, who had scored 357 in their first essay on the third evening itself. This was after Chattisgarh scored 343 batting first.
Starting the final day at 33 for no loss, Chhattisgarh ended up at 179 for 6 in 60 overs, prompting the two captains, Amandeep Khare and Himmat Singh, to shake hands, as no outright result was possible with only a session left to play.
For Delhi, under new head coach Sarandeep Singh, this can be considered a decent start, especially when reflecting on the struggles of the previous two seasons.
On the fourth morning, a key five-over spell from Saini (3 wickets for 36 runs in 12 overs) rattled Chhattisgarh, dismissing Aayush Pandey (33) and Eknath Kerkar (13) in quick succession. By lunch, Chhattisgarh had lost five wickets and held less than a 100-run lead.
However, skipper Khare (18 off 80 balls) and Ajay Mandal (57 not out off 94 balls) managed to bat for 17.4 overs, adding only 38 runs for the sixth wicket but consuming enough time to secure a solitary point for their team.
Once Saini trapped Khare leg before with the old ball, Delhi saw a glimmer of victory. However, Mandal and former Mumbai batter Bhupen Lalwani (3 not out) batted for another 9.2 overs, leading the match to a drawn conclusion.
Earlier, Gurjapneet Singh's six-wicket haul helped Tamil Nadu to start their Ranji Trophy 2024-25 season with a dominant innings and 70-run victory over Saurashtra in Elite Group D. His bowling helped the hosts to bowl out the visitors for a mere 94 runs in their second innings at the Coimbatore Stadium.
