welcome to sports starCoverage of Day 1 of the Ranji Trophy 2021-22 Season Pre-Quarter-Final between Jharkhand and Nagaland.

YB Sarangi: STEM. Kushagra got his first cent. Jharkhand 402/5 in 87 overs. Kushagra at bat for 112, Anukul Roy at bat for 21. Virat Singh is out for 107.

Y.B. Sarangi: Virat Singh completes his 5th first class cent. Jharkhand 334/4.

Y.B. Sarangi: Jharkhand go strong at 251/4 in 59 tea overs as lack of discipline affects Nagaland’s bowling. Virat Singh (55) and Kumar Kushagra (34) are at the crease adding 65 runs quickly for the unbeaten fifth wicket stand. Kumar Suraj (66) was the other wicket to fall in the afternoon session. He was trapped in front by leg spinner Kense. He put 6 with Virat.

Jharkhand 186/4 in 46 overs: A gritty stand was broken. Khrievitso traps Kumar Suraj for 66 as Jharkhand loses his fourth.

YB Sarangi: Jharkhand 182/3 in 45 overs. Suraj bats on 64 while Virat is on 22. Both netted 56 in record time after captain Saurabh Tiwary fell on 29. He was deemed lbw by his counterpart and offspinner Jonathan. Tiwary and Suraj accounted for 62 races.

Jharkhand 129/3 in 33.3 overs: The captain becomes captain! R Jonathan traps Tiwary in front as Jharkhand loses his third wicket.

YB Sarangi: Jharkhand 107/2 in 29 overs at lunch first day. Shrikant Mundhe retired fellow flyhalf Utkarsh Singh by getting him caught in the slides just after the drinks break. Saurabh Tiwary (24) and Kumar Suraj (18) added 43 for a third unbroken wicket partnership.

Jharkhand 100/2 in 25 overs: 100 more for Jharkhand. Tiwary and Kumar rebuilt the innings steadily at a good pace.

Jharkhand 82/2 in 20 overs: Tiwary quickly took charge, going 13 from 17 with a four and a six.

Jharkhand 64/2 in 15 overs: Jharkhand lost the first two games in the space of six balls. Utkarsh Singh falls to SS Mundhe as skipper Saurabh Tiwary joins Kumar Suraj in the middle. Utkarsh Singh v Abu Nechim v Mundhe 36(55b, 7*4)

Jharkhand 60/1 in 14 overs | Y.B. Sarangi: First wicket for Nagaland. Hopongkyu struck in his first over, made the ball move beautifully from the desk and brought Mohammad Nazim’s outside edge to the keeper. Nazim made 28. Utkarsh Singh is at bat on 32. Md Nazim v Chetan Bist v Chopise Hopongkyu 28 (35b, 4*4)

Jharkhand 43/0 in 10 overs: The openers continue their momentum. Raja Swarnkar has been a little pricey compared to fellow countryman Nechim as Jharkhand heads towards the 50 point mark.

Jharkhand 30/0 in 6 overs: Our correspondent YB Sarangi adds his contributions from the place. There are hints of early stitching movement for Nagaland stimulators. However, the openers denied it to keep the board turning.

Jharkhand 21/0 in 4 overs: The openers had the eye. Utkarsh moved to 16 of 17 deliveries with three fours to his name.

Abu Nechim takes the new ball for Nagaland. Utkarsh Singh and Nazim Siddiqui open for Jharkhand.

Jharkhand playing XI: Md Nazim, Utkarsh Singh, Kumar Suraj, Saurabh Tiwary (c), Virat Singh, Kumar Kushagra (wk), Anukul Roy, Shahbaz Nadeem, Ashish Kumar, Sushant Mishra, Rahul Shukla

Nagaland playing XI: R Jonathan (c), Zhimomi, Sedezhalie, Yugandhar, SS Mundhe, Chetan Bist (wk), Abu Nechim Ahmed, Imliwati, Hopongkyu, Khrievitso, Raja Swarnkar

TOSS: Nagaland win the Toss, go for the pitch

Match Preview

Jharkhand will carry on their confidence after toppling two bigger teams and Nagaland will bank on their confidence as the leader of the plate when they lock the horns in the only Ranji Trophy pre-quarter-final match from the gardens of Eden here from Saturday.

After losing their opener against Chhattisgarh, Jharkhand stunned Delhi and Tamil Nadu in the Elite Group-H matches in Guwahati to collect 12 points. It missed out on a direct qualification spot as Uttarakhand, who had identical points but a better quotient, progressed to the quarter-finals.

READ|

IND vs SL: Cleansweep on the charts for India in day-night test

Nagaland, who have won three in a row, including a set win here, collected 19 points and earned the right to play with an Elite team for the first time.

The north eastern state has been working hard on developing its cricket under former Hyderabad spinner Kanwaljit Singh. It succeeded in producing local talent.

“The boys have come a long way. Qualification (for knockouts) is a huge motivation for the team,” said coach Kanwaljit.

Nagaland’s progress this season was mostly based on consistent performances. They included professionals like top scorers Shrikant Mundhe and Chetan Bist and homegrown players such as captain Rongsen Jonathan, a hitter who has also done well in his new role as spinner, left-arm spinner and practical all-rounder Imliwati Lemtur and best hitter Hokaito Zhimomi.

READ| Sreesanth announces his retirement

Kanwalijit believes his team has the right resources, including Mundhe, Abu Nechim, Raja Swarnakar and Nagaho Chishi, to make the most of the support promised by the Eden track.

Jharkhand also has effective pacers in Rahul Shukla, Ashish Kumar and young left arm pacer Sushant Mishra who can exploit the conditions.

Experienced spinner Shahbaz Nadeem and his young partner Anukul Roy are there to lend their support.

The hitters, such as Virat Singh, Utkarsh Singh, Kumar Suraj, Nazim Siddiqui and Saurabh Tiwary have shown their abilities and would like to continue their good work.

“After beating Delhi and Tamil Nadu, the confidence in the team is high and we want to continue the winning streak. We won’t take Nagaland, who are also top of their group, lightly,” said Jharkhand coach Satish Singh.

-YB Sarangi

Who reached the quarter-finals

RELATED