Showing posts with label Nazim Siddiqui. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Nazim Siddiqui. Show all posts

Monday, March 7, 2022

Ranji Trophy 2021-22: Jharkhand Group Stage Review

Ranji Trophy returned after a season off due to the Covid-19 pandemic. However, with the Omicron wave and restrictions still in place it was a short season with all teams getting just 3 games! But at least we had some action.

One team which certainly enjoyed this run was Jharkhand. They lost their first game against Chhattisgarh but then roared back with wins against Delhi and Tamil Nadu to top the group. However, having the worst record amongst all 8 group toppers, they will have to enter the play-off against Nagaland (who finished top of the Plate Group). But I guess the players wouldn’t complain as this gives them one more game!

Jharkhand’s season was headlined by the older warhorses – Saurabh Tiwary & Shahbaz Nadeem who each played a stellar role in getting the victories. They also had good support from the likes of Virat Singh, Rahul Shukla, Nazim Siddique and relative newcomer Kumar Suraj and debutante Sushant Mishra. Suraj is currently averaging over 50 although its still early days in his career!

Here is a game-by-game summary of the season so far.
Captains: Saurabh Tiwary Game 1 & 3, Virat Singh Game 2

Game 1: Jharkhand 169 & 133 lost to Chhattisgarh 174 & 129/2 by 8 wickets
Points: Jharkhand 0, Chhattisgarh 6
Highlights:
  • Sushant Mishra 5/27 in 1st innings on debut
  • Saurabh Tiwary completed 7000 runs in first-class cricket in his 101st game
Game 2: Jharkhand 251 & 307/7d beat Delhi 224 & 319 by 15 runs
Points: Jharkhand 6, Delhi 0
Highlights:
  • Virat Singh -103* in 1st innings, First-class Century #4
  • Shahbaz Nadeem – 5/58 & 5/83, First-class 5-wicket haul #20 & #21 and 10-wicket haul #6
  • Nazim Siddiqui – 52 & 110, First-class century #4
  • Kumar Suraj – 131* in 2nd innings, First-class century #3
  • First-class debut – Kumar Kushagra & Vikash Vishal
Game 3: Tamil Nadu 285 & 152 lost to Jharkhand 226 & 214/8 by 2 wickets
Points: Jharkhand 6, Tamil Nadu 0
Highlights:
  • Saurabh Tiwary – 58 & 93
  • Rahul Shukla – 3/57 & 5/29, 6th 5-wicket haul in first-class cricket
  • Kumar Kushagra – 1st First-class 50
Season Stats:
Highest Scorers
  1. Nazim Siddiqui 199 @ 33.17, 1x100, 1x50
  2. Saurabh Tiwary 182 @ 45.50, 2x50
  3. Virat Singh 171 @ 28.50, 1x100
Highest Wicket-takers
  1. Shahbaz Nadeem 15 @ 21.33, 2x5, 1x10
  2. Sushant Mishra 11 @ 20.73, 1x5
  3. Rahul Shukla 8 @ 10.75, 1x5
Best Batting: Kumar Suraj 131* vs Delhi
Best Bowling: Sushant Mishra 5/27 vs Chhattisgarh
Player Count: 15
Captain Count: 2
First-Class Debut: 3

Coming Up Next: Pre-Quarter-Final vs Nagaland from March 12th

Monday, January 24, 2022

Vijay Hazare Trophy 2021-22: Jharkhand Review

Domestic Cricket continues to be in stop-start mode since the covid pandemic first hit. And just when things seemed to be heading back to normal, India is now in grips of the third wave leading to postponement of Ranji Trophy again. In the interim, Vijay Hazare Trophy was successfully held (a tremendous achievement given the logistical challenges) 

Jharkhand had another middling tournament. They won 2 & lost 3 matches to finish 3rd in the group missing out a berth in the knock-outs. Virat Singh lead the side in the first two games in Saurabh Tiwary’s s absence, who led the side in the remaining three. 

Here is the game-by-game summary of the tournament. 

Game 1: Jharkhand 263/8 (50) lost to Delhi 264/4 (47) by 6 wickets 
Highlights: Virat Singh 79, Kaushal Singh 69, Anukul Roy 47 & 1/49 
Debut: Sushant Mishra 

Game 2: Uttar Pradesh 239/7 (50) lost to Jharkhand 242/2 (46.1) by 8 wickets 
Highlights: Rahul Shukla 3/51, Varun Aaron 2/36, Nazim Siddiqui 116, Utkarsh Singh 57* 

Game 3: Haryana 281/3 (50) beat Jharkhand 253/10 (49.3) by 28 runs 
Highlights: Nazim Siddiqui 62, Utkarsh Singh 78 

Game 4: Jharkhand 211/10 (49.1) lost to Saurashtra 212/3 (34.4) by 7 wickets 
Highlights: Ishank Jaggi 56, Utkarsh Singh 55, Varun Aaron 2/34 

Game 5: Jharkhand 276/10 (50) beat Hyderabad 240/10 (48.4) by 36 runs 
Highlights: Virat Singh 65, Varun Aaron 3/50, Shahbaz Nadeem 3/32 

Season Stats 
Highest Scorers 
  1. Nazim Siddiqui 271 @ 54.20, 1x100, 1x50 
  2. Virat Singh 196 @ 49.00, 2x50 
  3. Utkarsh Singh 191 @ 47.75, 3x50 
Highest Wicket-takers 
  1. Varun Aaron 8 @ 20.13 
  2. Shahbaz Nadeem 6 @ 37.17 
  3. Rahul Shukla 4 @ 48.75 
Best Batting: Nazim Siddiqui 116 vs Uttar Pradesh 
Best Bowling: Shahbaz Nadeem 3/32 vs Hyderabad 
Players Used: 15 
List A Debut: 1 

Overall, not a particularly great run for Jharkhand. Ishan Kishan was once again missed. And now we enter a phase of uncertainty for the next fixture. Although there is an IPL auction coming up as well.

Thursday, February 20, 2020

Ranji Trophy 2019-20: Jharkhand Review

Jharkhand finished 6th in the Group in a season which started with a bang and then got derailed. There was the stunning come from behind opening game against Tripura where Jharkhand became the first team in the history of Ranji Trophy to win the game after following on. However, as the season progressed, the Saurabh Tiwary lead side saw more downs than ups and eventually ended 6th in the group.

Highs & Lows
  • The opening encounter against Tripura, which got its own separate post
  • Kumar Suraj’s good start to his first-class career. 
  • Missing senior players like Nadeem, Ishan & Aaron on account of India A duties and injuries.
And I ran into the team at Hyderabad airport!

Season Summary Game by Game
Game 1: Tripura (289 & 211) lost to Jharkhand (136 & 418/8d (f/o)) by 54 runs 
Points: Jharkhand 6, Tripura 0
  • First-Class Debut: Arnav Sinha, Vivekanand Tiwari
  • First-Class Century #18 for Saurabh Tiwary 
  • First-Class Century #19 for Ishank Jaggi 
  • 1000 First-Class runs for Virat Singh & Nazim Siddiqui 
  • Ashish Kumar – 2nd 5-wicket haul, Career - Best Innings & match figures
Game 2: Assam (162 & 186) lost to Jharkhand (415/9d) by innings & 67 runs 
Points: Jharkhand 7, Assam 0 
  • First-Class Debut: Pankaj Kumar, the wicket-keeper 
  • First-Class Century #3 for Nazim Siddiqui & Career-best 173
Game 3: Haryana (371) drew with Jharkhand (408/5) 
Points: Jharkhand 3, Haryana 1 
  • First-Class Century #2 for Kumar Deobrat & Career-best 161 
  • First-Class Century #19 for Saurabh Tiwary
Game 4: Jharkhand (259 & 155) lost to Jammu & Kashmir (441) by an innings & 27 runs 
Points: Jharkhand 0, Jammu & Kashmir 7 

Game 5: Maharashtra (434 & 48/2) beat Jharkhand (170 & 311 (f/o)) by 8 wickets 
Points: Jharkhand 0, Maharashtra 6 
  • First-Class Debut – Kumar Suraj 
  • 5-Wicket Haul #1 – Utkarsh Singh
Game 6: Uttarakhand (227 & 273) lost to Jharkhand (298 & 203/4) by 6 wickets 
Points: Jharkhand 6, Uttarakhand 0 
  • 2000 First-Class Runs for Kumar Deobrat 
  • 50 Catches for Sumit Kumar 
  • 100 First-Class Wickets, 3rd 5-wicket haul & best match-figures for Ashish Kumar 
  • 5-wicket haul #6 for Ajay Yadav 
Game 7: Services (279 & 259/8d) beat Jharkhand (153 & 267) by 118 runs 
Points: Jharkhand 0, Services 6 
  • First-Class Debut for Sahil Raj 
  • First-Class Century #1 for Kumar Suraj 
  • 100 First-Class wickets for Rahul Shukla, 5th 5-wicket haul & best innings performance 
Game 8: Chhattisgarh (559) drew with Jharkhand (242 & 51/0) 
Points: Chhattisgarh 3, Jharkhand 1 
  • First-Class Century #3 for Virat Singh & highest score 
Game 9: Odisha (436 & 187/1) drew with Jharkhand (356) 
Points: Odisha 3, Jharkhand 1 
  • 100th First-Class Match for Saurabh Tiwary 
  • First-Class Century #2 for Kumar Suraj 
  • 5-wicket Haul #4 for Ashish Kumar 
Season Stats 
Most Runs:
  1. Saurabh Tiwary – 641 @58.27, 2x100s & 3x50s
  2. Kumar Deobrat – 515 @39.62, 1x100s & 2x50s
  3. Kumar Suraj – 457 @57.13, 2x100 & 2x50s
Highest Score – Nazim Siddiqui – 173 vs Assam
Most Wickets
  1. Ashish Kumar – 37 @221.78, 3x5s 
  2. Rahul Shukla – 19 @34.42, 1x5s
  3. Utkarsh Singh – 16 @40.44, 1x5s
Best Bowling – Rahul Shukla – 7/106 vs Services
Player Count: 21
First-Class Debuts: 5

Till next season! However there is the small matter of IPL in between, where the likes of Tiwary, Virat Singh, Ishan, Nadeem, Aaron and Monu would look to put in performances worth of the highlights reel. And maybe consolidate an A Spot.

Monday, December 16, 2019

Jharkhand’s Eden Garden moment

Jharkhand vs Tripura, Agartala – Dec, 2019

Jharkhand became the first team in history of Ranji Trophy to win a game after being asked to follow-on. And what a special effort it was with the senior batsmen Saurabh Tiwary & Ishank Jaggi getting unbeaten hundreds to first overcome the deficit and then set up a target for the bowlers. Ashish Kumar and company then complemented the efforts of the batsman to knock out Tripura in the very last over. A truly remarkable feat in the sporting context itself. And add the fact that Jharkhand were without the services of Varun Aaron, Shahbaz Nadeem and Ishan Kishan. This one becomes extra special. 

The last day commenced in uncertainty, in the backdrop of violent protests against the Citizenship Amendment Bill. At such times sports do not really matter but they can act as a balm to maintain a semblance of normalcy. Kudos to the organizers and the teams for going through with the game on such a day. Otherwise we wouldn’t have had such a remarkable passage of play in the history of Ranji Trophy! 

VVS Laxman’s career catapulted from an ordinary one into an all-time great trajectory after the miracle at Eden Gardens. Lets see what impact does this special effort have on the careers of Kumar Deobrat, Arnav Sinha, Nazim Siddiqui, Saurabh Tiwary, Ishank Jaggi, Virat Singh, Anukul Roy, Rahul Prasad, Vivekanand Tiwari, Ashish Kumar and Ajay Yadav. 

How Jharkhand pulled off a repeat of Eden Gardens in Agartala - Cricinfo Article 

Thursday, February 15, 2018

Vijay Hazare Trophy 2018: Jharkhand Review

A bad season for Jharkhand comes to an end with the team finishing 5th in Group D of the Vijay Hazare Trophy.  Here is a summary of the action.

Ishan Kishan takes over as captain of the Jharkhand team, while Ishank Jaggi continues to miss out on account of injury.

Game 1: Vidarbha 300/10 (49) beat Jharkhand 293/7 (50) by 7 runs
  • Key Performers: Rahul Shukla 4/52 (10), Shahbaz Nadeem 2/53 (10) & 21*, Atul Surwar 2/52 (9), Vikash Singh 2/78 (9) & 59* (37); Saurabh Tiwary 65 (77), Kumar Deobrat 60 (76). 
  • A valiant 8th wicket unbeaten partnership off 85 runs off 50 balls between Vikash & Nadeem wasn’t enough for Jharkhand to cross the line.
  • List A Debuts: Nazim Siddiqui, Atul Surwar, Sumit Kumar
  • Nazim Siddiqui had a golden duck on debut!
  • Vikash Singh recorded his highest List A Score & best bowling performance.
Game 2: Hyderabad 333/7 (50) beat Jharkhand 267 (46.5) by 66 runs
  • Key Performers: Rahul Shukla 2/69 (9), Ishan Kishan 51 (65) & Atul Surwar 58* (57)
  • Another valiant lower order partnership after a top order crumble!
  • Nazim Siddiqui got his 2nd duck in a row in his 2nd List A Game!
  • Virat Singh gets his 1st List A wicket.
  • Maiden List A 50 for Atul Surwar
Game 3: Services 202/9 (50) lost to Jharkhand 203/5 (30.5) by 5 wickets
  • Key Performers: Varun Aaron (3/20), Anukul Roy (2/20), Ishan Kishan 106 (75), Saurabh Tiwary 56* (67)
  • Senior debut for U-19 World Cup star Anukul Roy, who had an excellent game. 
  • 1st List A century for Ishan Kishan.
Game 4: Jharkhand 329/9 (50) lost to Saurashtra 333/6 (48.2) by 4 wickets
  • Key Performers: Ishan Kishan 93(96), Sumit Kumar (64)
  • List A debuts for Utkarsh Singh & Ashish Kumar
  • Maiden List A Fifty for Sumit Kumar
Game 5: Jharkhand 288/9 (50) lost to Chhattisgarh 294/3 (46) by 7 wickets
  • Key Performers: Saurabh Tiwary 107 (105), Kumar Deobrat 51 (74), Varun Aaron 2/51
  • 5th List A century for Saurabh Tiwary
Game 6: Jharkhand 296/9 (50) beat Jammu & Kashmir 199/10 (46) by 97 runs
  • Key Performers: Virat Singh 96 (97), Ashish Kumar 3/23 (7), Vikash Singh 3/37 (8), Anukul Roy 2/38 (10)
  • Team captained by Virat Singh in the absence of the injured Ishan Kishan.
  • Highest List A score for Virat Singh.
Season Stats
Top Scorers:
  • Saurabh Tiwary: 322 @ 64.40 
  • Ishan Kishan: 313 @ 78.25
  • Virat Singh: 195 @ 32.50
Most Wickets:
  • Vikash Singh: 8 @ 32.25
  • Rahul Shukla: 8 @ 36.00
  • Varun Aaron: 7 @ 34.14
That's it for this season with just the Irani Trophy and IPL left. Hoping to be back again next season where there is a good chance of Bihar also featuring. So might cover two teams instead of one!

Monday, January 22, 2018

IPL 2018 Auctions: Jharkhand Preview

The biggest event of the cricketing year is about to be held on January 28th and 29th. With the near-complete overhaul of the teams, many players would be waiting with bated breath at the results of the auction. Who is picked by whom and at what price. Wondering which performace may have caught the eye of the IPL scout, which might get them a chance to perform on the stepping stone to A and national team.

The Retained
As expected, MS Dhoni has been retained for Rs. 15 Crores, by Chennai Super Kings, who are returning to the IPL fold after a two year suspension.

The Short-List
And below is the list of players who are in the short-list for the auction, alongwith their sequence of appearance in the pool. Many uncapped pools have been brought forward, making the auction a bit more interesting. Below is the list of Jharkhand boys in the auction pool.

S. No.
Name
Set #
Base Price
 2017 Team
IPL Experience
1.
Ishank Jaggi
8
20 Lakhs
Kolkata Knight Riders
7
2.
Ishan Kishan
10
40 Lakhs
Gujarat Lions
16
3.
Shahbaz Nadeem
12
40 Lakhs
Delhi Daredevils
55
4.
Saurabh Tiwary
13
50 Lakhs
Mumbai Indians
81
5.
Varun Aaron
26
50 Lakhs
Kings XI Punjab
42
6.
Virat Singh
28
20 Lakhs
-
-
7.
Anukul Roy
37
20 Lakhs
-
-
8.
Nazim Siddiqui
38
20 Lakhs
-
-
9.
Rahul Shukla
39
20 Lakhs
-
7
10.
Pratyush Singh
49
20 Lakhs
Delhi Daredevils
0
11.
Monu Kumar
54
20 Lakhs
-
-

Quite a few names in the mix here. The likes of Nadeem, Ishan Kishan, Aaron should certainly get picked. While Jaggi, Tiwary and Virat Singh have a decent chance. Anukul Roy recently described as the Ravindra Jadeja of Samastipur has a very strong chance of getting picked after his recent exploits in the Under-19 World Cup. Although, he is yet to make his Jharkhand debut!

The bringing forward of the Syed Mustaq Ali Trophy has given a good opportunity for the players to showcase their talents. The likes of Virat Singh and Monu Kumar have certainly made good use of this opportunity. Hope they have caught the eye of the scouts as well.

Good luck to the auction XI!

P.S. Performances of the Jharkhand players in IPL 2017!

Wednesday, January 17, 2018

Syed Mustaq Ali Trophy 2018: Zonal Stage: Jharkhand Review

Before we delve further, a piece of interesting news from the Honorable Supreme Court, who have directed BCCI to allow Bihar to play in the Ranji Trophy. So most likely from next season, Slipstream Cricket will be providing more Domestic coverage as we have two teams to follow now! But we shall cross that bridge when it comes. 

This year, BCCI has brought forward the Domestic T20 tournament, thus giving the players an added incentive of performing just before the IPL auctions. Last year, Ishank Jaggi grabbed his chances and got an IPL contract. This year with the complete overhaul of the IPL teams, more places are up for grabs. 

There was a change in the tournament format. Like every year, we need to keep tinkering with our domestic tournaments! The tournament is held in two stages, first the zonal leagues followed by Top two from each zone qualifying for the Super League and followed by a Final. Thus better team performances give more chances to individuals to showcase their talent to the IPL scouts.

Now for Jharkhand’s performance. MS Dhoni opted out of the tournament which was a big blow to the team. Varun Aaron lead the team.

Game 1: Jharkhand 163/6 (20) beat Tripura 139/9 (20) by 24 runs
Key performers: Virat Singh 43 (31), Ishan Kishan 26 (16), Ishank Jaggi 33 (26). 2 wickets each for Nadeem, Varun Aaron and Kaushal Singh who also contributed 20 with the bat.

Game 2: Jharkhand 177/9 (20) lost to Bengal 179/4 (19.2) by 6 wickets
Key Performers: Ishank Jaggi 72 (39) & Ishan Kishan 49 (35). 2 wickets for Kaushal Singh.

Game 3: Assam 148/6 (20) lost to Jharkhand 149/2 (16) by 8 wickets.
Key Performers: Monu Kumar 3/23, Ishank Jaggi 68*(37) & Ishan Kishan 36 (19)
T20 debut for Nazim Siddiqui.

Game 4: Odisha 123 (19.4) lost to Jharkhand 129/2 (16.4) by 8 wickets
Key Performers: Monu Kumar with 4/14; Ishan Kishan 51 (38) & Ishank Jaggi 40*(25).
Senior debut for Atul Surwar.

Jharkhand finished second in East Zone behind Bengal to qualify for the Super League.

Season Stats:
Top Scorer: Ishank Jaggi - 213 runs
Most Wickets: Monu Kumar - 8 

Wednesday, November 29, 2017

Ranji Trophy 17-18: Jharkhand vs Gujarat

Match Summary: Gujarat (411 & 16/0) beat Jharkhand (242 & 183(f/o)) by 10 wickets
Points: Gujarat 7, Jharkhand 0

And the terrible season ends with another big defeat, at the hands of the defending champions Gujarat. Jharkhand were never in the running in this game and were outplayed completely. Nothing really to write about except Kumar Deobrat's twin fifties.

Overall a very disappointing season especially after last year's run to the semi-finals. Too much chopping and changing went on. We suffered from the absence of Shahbaz Nadeem due to India A duty, during the initial games, then Saurabh Tiwary had a bad run of form. Ishank Jaggi got 3 consecutive centuries but not much beyond that. Overall, the team did not click as a unit except for one game. On the bright side, Nazim Siddiqui's debut season was solid. Should get a decent run.

Highlights
  • Playing XI:Changes - too many of them!
    • In:  Virat Singh, Ashish Kumar, Ajay Yadav
    • Out: Saurabh Tiwary, Sunny Gupta, Sonu Singh
  • Shahbaz Nadeem led the side in Tiwary's absence
  • 350 FC wickets for Nadeem
  • Kumar Deobrat recorded his highest FC score of 80.
Season Stats
  • Top Scorers: 
    • Ishan Kishan - 484 @44.00
    • Nazim Siddiqui - 474 @43.09
    • Ishank Jaggi - 448 @44.80
  • Top Wicket-taker: 
    • Shahbaz Nadeem - 18 @32.83
    • Sunny Gupta - 17 @25.47
    • Varun Aaron - 15 @29.93
  • Player Count: 20
  • Captain Count: 3
Points Tally - 8 after 6 games. Finishing 6th in the group

Coming Up Next
Vijay Hazare Trophy in mid-February. Let's see if any of the players make an appearance in the Rest of India squad for the Irani Trophy.

Monday, November 6, 2017

Ranji Trophy 17-18: Jharkhand vs Saurashtra

Match Summary: Saurashtra (553/9d & 59/4) beat Jharkhand (270 &341 (f/o)) by 6 wickets
Points: Saurashtra 6, Jharkhand 0

Cheteshwar Pujara has had a lean patch in recent times and he chose this very match to come back into form! In the process shattering the record for the most double centuries by an Indian batsman. For some reason Ranji, after whom the Trophy is named is not counted as an Indian batsman!!

Jharkhand were simply outplayed by the Saurashtra side. Although there were some passages of play when they were on top. In the first innings after taking down the first 4 Saurashtra wickets quickly. And in the entertaining passage of play following-on when Nazim Siddiqui and Sumit Kumar were going at over 5 runs per over. Siddiqui was unlucky to miss out on a century by a whisker - out for 99 off just 75 balls! With the ball, they did knock off 4 Saurashtra wickets while defending a meager target of 59.

The result makes the task of qualifying even more difficult.

Highlights
  • Playing XI:Changes: 
    • In: Sumit Kumar, Sonu Singh, (both in their first appearance of the season), Ashish Kumar
    • Out: Jaskaran Singh, Sunny Gupta, Virat SIngh
  • Maiden first-class century for Sumit Kumar, who also kept wickets, while Ishan Kishan played as a pure batsman.
  • First-class century #18 for Ishank Jaggi, also his 3rd of the season.
  • 50 FC wickets for Ashish Kumar in his 15th game
Season Stats
  • Top Scorer: Ishank Jaggi - 399 @66.50
  • Top Wicket-taker: Sunny Gupta - 15@20.20
  • Player Count: 17
  • Captain Count: 2
Points Tally - 8 after 4 games. Stayed at 4th. However, the gap with Top 3 has widened quite a bit. Need outright victories in both remaining games to stay in contention.

Coming Up Next
Jammu & Kashmir who are in the 6th place.

Wednesday, October 18, 2017

Ranji Trophy 17-18: Jharkhand vs Rajasthan

Match Summary: Rajasthan (423) drew with Jharkhand (262 & 332/6 (f/o))
Points: Rajasthan 3, Jharkhand 1

The terrible start to the season continues as Jharkhand managed a single point against Rajasthan. Centuries by Amit Gautam and Tajinder Singh helped Rajasthan build up a big total of 423. Jharkhand batsmen did not really get going in reply with only Saurabh Tiwary managing some resistance. Jharkhand were forced to follow-on but they performed much more creditably the second time around to limit the damage and come away with one point from the game.

Highlights
  • Playing XI:Changes: 
    • In: Jaskaran Singh & Ajay Yadav
    • Out: Varun Aaron & Samar Quadri
  • Saurbah Tiwary captained the side in Varun Aaron's absence
  • Nazim Siddiqui scored his maiden first-class 100 in just his second game and that too on his 23rd birthday! Not a bad birthday gift for himself!
  • First-class century #16 for Ishank Jaggi and a match-saving one at that.
Season Stats
  • Top Scorer: Ishan Kishan - 142 @35.50
  • Top Wicket-taker: Sunny Gupta - 9@19.44
  • Player Count: 13
  • Captain Count: 2
Points Tally - 1 after 2 games. Moved up 1 place to 6th. Need a couple of outright wins to secure qualification.

Coming Up Next
Haryana who are currently in 7th place with no points. However, they have a game in hand. Hopefully Nadeem's return from India A duties will boost the team.

Tuesday, October 10, 2017

Ranji Trophy 17-18: Jharkhand vs Kerala

Match Summary: Jharkhand (202 & 89) lost to Kerala (259 & 34/1) by 9 wickets
Points: Kerala 6, Jharkhand 0

The worst possible start to the new season losing the opening game! In a low scoring encounter, Jharkhand were on the back-foot from the start. However, being routed out for 89 in the 2nd innings must have been really soul-crushing. They were done in by the all-round efforts of Jalaj Saxena who took 11 wickets and scored a half-century as well. 

Jharkhand certainly missed Shahbaz Nadeem, who is on India A duty.

Highlights
  • Playing XI: Babul Kumar, Nazim Siddiqui, Virat Singh, Saurabh Tiwary, Ishank Jaggi, Ishan Kishan, Kaushal Singh, Sunny Gupta, Varun Aaron, Ashish Kumar, Samar Quadri.
  • Varun Aaron was leading the side.
  • While most of his team-mates had an outing to forget, Sunny Gupta managed a 6-wicket haul in the first innings.
  • First Class debut for Nazim Siddiqui, also his first official game at the senior level.
  • Kaushal Singh reached the career milestone of a 1000 first-class runs
  • Babul Kumar returned to first-class cricket after nearly 4 years. Innings of two and a duck now follow his maiden game of a single and a duck!
Season Stats
  • Top Scorer: Ishan Kishan - 59 @24.50
  • Top Wicket-taker: Sunny Gupta - 6@16.50
  • Player Count: 11
Points Tally - 0 after 1 game. Placed right at the bottom of the table.

Coming Up Next
Rajasthan who are currently in 4th place with a solitary point form their opening game