Day one of the Irani Cup - played between the Ranji Trophy winners and a Rest of India squad - had Vidarbha opener Atharva Taide end unbeaten on 118: here’s the full round-up.
The match, being played at Nagpur, saw Vidarbha, the Ranji Trophy champions of 2024/25, winning the toss and batting first against the Rajat Patidar-led side. Vidarbha got off to a steady start, scoring 40 runs in 7.1 overs, but they lost three quick top-order wickets. From 40 for no loss, they slumped to 80-3, but opener Taide stood firm, playing a patient knock.
He brought up his fifth first-class hundred in 201 balls, getting to the milestone with a six. He got plenty of support from Yash Rathod, who hung around for 91 off 153, narrowly missing out on what would have been his eighth ton in the format. It was the second time he missed out on a milestone in less than a month: He scored a career-best 194 in the Duleep Trophy final, falling six short of a maiden double hundred. Since the start of the season, he has scored 87*, 78, 2, 194, 13* and now 91 in first-class cricket.
Rathod was dismissed by Manav Suthar, the former India Under-19 spinner, who had, just last week, taken a five-for against Australia A. Suthar ended the day with 3-64 in 23 overs, also dismissing Danish Malewar, who scored 153 and 73 in the Ranji Trophy final, for a duck.
One-off Match, Vidarbha vs Rest of India
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Indiawatch: Kamboj fails to make inroads, Akash Deep bags two
The two India internationals in action on the day were Anshul Kamboj, who played a Test against England, and Akash Deep, who has not been selected for the West Indies series after a prolonged injury layoff. Akash Deep, who picked up a ten-for at the Birmingham Test, was advised to rest after an unknown injury niggle that also saw him miss the Duleep Trophy. He had also missed the fourth Test against England due to a back niggle, and has not been picked for the Windies series, beginning tomorrow, as a result.
Kamboj, who failed to leave a mark in his debut Test, went wicketless against Vidarbha, conceding 34 runs in nine overs at an economy rate of 3.77. Akash Deep was the only other bowler from the Rest of India, aside from Suthar, to pick up a wicket on the day. He dismissed opener Aman Mokhade for 19, and then sent back skipper Akshay Wadkar for five, to finish the day with figures of 2-35 in 14 overs.
Vidarbha were 280-5 at stumps.
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