Avasthi grabs seven to put Mumbai on top vs Kerala

Medium-pacer Mohit Avasthi singlehandedly dismantled Kerala batting line-up with seven wickets to leave Mumbai in command on day two of their Ranji Trophy Group B fixture here on Saturday.

In response to Mumbai's first innings 251, the home side were restricted to 244 with Avasthi's accurate and disciplined bowling (7/57).

With a narrow lead of seven runs in the first innings, Mumbai came out for their second innings with a strong intent to extend their advantage.

Openers Jay Bista and Bhupen Lalwani exhibited class and composure, remaining unbeaten at the close of play.

Bista's unbeaten 59 (67b; 3x4, 1x6), combined with Lalwani's resilient 41 (90b; 4x4), propelled Mumbai to 105 for no loss, an overall lead of 112 runs with all wickets intact.

Earlier, Sachin Baby was Kerala's top scorer (65; 130b) but he could not convert it into a big one, falling to Tanush Kotian (1/10; 3 overs).

Skipper Sanju Samson (38) also fell cheaply with Avasthi running through the Kerala middle-order.

Porel's maiden ton powers Bengal ==================== Young gun Abishek Porel notched up his maiden first-class century to steer hosts Bengal to a formidable 381/8 against Chhattisgarh at Eden Gardens in Kolkata.

The 21-year-old wicketkeeper-batter's knock of 114 runs came off 219 deliveries, featuring an impressive array of strokes, including 14 boundaries and a six.

Porel's innings proved to be the backbone of Bengal's batting, providing stability and resilience against the Chhattisgarh bowling attack.

His 120-run partnership with veteran Anustup Majumdar, who contributed 71, played a pivotal role in Bengal's innings.

Resuming the day on 206/4, the duo completed their respective fifties before Chhattisgarh finally broke the partnership with Sourabh Majumdar dismissing the Bengal veteran.

Suraj Singh Sandhu (33 batting) Karan Lal (24 batting), Shubham Chatterjee (21) also made valuable lower-order contributions to take Bengal close to the 400-mark.

Andhra take upper hand =============== In Dibrugarh, Lalith Mohan and Manish Golamaru bagged three wickets each to lead Andhra's bowling, as Assam were bundled out for 160 in 60.1 overs from being 43 for no loss overnight.

At close on day two, Andhra were 147/1, taking an overall lead of 175.

Skipper Ricky Bhui (52) and Hanuma Vihari (48) were at the crease in an unbroken 100-run partnership for the second wicket.

Brief Scores In Thumba: Mumbai 251 and 105 for no loss; 26 overs (Jay Bista 59 batting, Bhupen Lalwani 41 batting). Kerala 244; 55.2 overs (Sachin Baby 65, Rohan Kunnummal 56; Mohit Avasthi 7/57). Mumbai lead by 112 runs.

In Kolkata: Bengal 381/8; 128 overs (Abhishek Porel 114, Sudip Gharami 49, Suraj Sindhu Jaiswal 33 batting; Shashank Singh 2/42, Sourabh Majumdar 2/72, Vashudev Bareth 2/85) vs Chhattisgarh.

In Dibrugarh: Andhra 188 and 147/1; 42 overs (Ricky Bhui 52 batting, Hanuma Vihari 48 batting) Assam 160; 60.1 overs (Rahul Hazarika 39; Lalith Mohan 3/27, Manish Golamaru 3/21, Nitish Reddy 2/32). Andhra lead by 175 runs.

In Meerut: Bihar 126/3; 48 overs (Sraman Nigrodh 72) vs Uttar Pradesh.