Ranji Trophy: Ton-Up Karun Nair Puts Karnataka Ahead, Shahbaz Nadeem Shines For Jharkhand

Karun Nair returned to form with a patient hundred as Karnataka set a stiff target of 380 for Hyderabad on the third day of their group A Ranji Trophy encounter. Courtesy Nair's 134 off 229 balls with 17 boundaries, Karnataka scored 332 in their second innings ending with an overall lead of 379 runs. At stumps, Hyderabad were 92 for 2 with Tanmay Agarwal batting on 43. They need another 288 runs on the final day while Karnataka need to take eight wickets.

The day belonged to Nair, who scored his 11th first-class hundred. The century came after a prolonged bad patch that saw him getting dropped from the Indian team and also have modest returns during India A tours.

Brief Scores

Karnataka 183 and 332 (Karun Nair 134, Stuart Binny 72, Mehdi Hassan 5/88)

Hyderabad 136 and (target 380) 92/2 (Tanmay Agarwal 43 batting)

-Shahbaz's all-round effort put Jharkhand on driver's seat-

Shahbaz Nadeem hit a fifty and snapped two crucial wickets as Jharkhand posted 425/9d in their first innings and then reduced Haryana to 141-4 to take the driver's seat on the third day of a Ranji Trophy group B encounter on Thursday.

Shahbaz cracked a 150-ball 70 and then dismissed S G Rohilla and C K Bishnoi -- both had scored fifties in the first innings -- cheaply to consolidate Jharkhand's position in the match.

Brief Score:

Haryana 1st innings: 208

Jharkhand 1st innings: 425/9d in 133.5 overs (IR Jaggi 135, S Nadeem 70; CK Bishnoi 2/43)

Haryana 2nd innings: 141-4 in 47 overs (RM Dagar 64, Rajat Paliwal 44 not out; S Nadeem 2/50).

-Yo Mahesh, Indrajith help Tamil Nadu secure lead against Mumbai-

An unbeaten 103 by V Yo Mahesh, batting at No.9 combined with a superb 152 by B Indrajith helped Tamil Nadu post 450 and grab a vital 76-run lead against Mumbai in a Ranji Trophy group C match'.

Resuming at the overnight 239 for 5, the visitors lost R Ashwin (13) and N Jagadeesan (21) in the space of 48 runs. However, Indrajith continued to bat with assurance and was involved in a 52-run partnership with Yo Mahesh as the team continued its pursuit of Mumbai's score of 374.

The hosts struck a big blow when Indrajith was dismissed after adding 47 runs to his overnight score by Vijay D Gohil to leave Tamil Nadu at 339 for 8. Yo Mahesh, who was batting on 26, took on the job of pushing the score ahead.

The 29-year-old, recalled to the state side after nearly five years, mixed caution with aggression and struck some meaty blows. Along with the No.10 batsman Rahil S Shah, he added 72 runs, which helped Tamil Nadu go past Mumbai's 374.

Yo Mahesh had brought up his 50 with a big six and reached his maiden first-class ton in 213 balls with a ferocious sweep.

Brief scores:

Mumbai 374 & 85 for 1 in 22 overs.

Tamil Nadu 450 all out in 142 overs (B Indrajith 152, V Yo Mahesh 103 not out, M S Washington Sundar 69, Vijay Gohil 4