India C 168 (Indrajith 72, Harshit 4-33, Saransh 2-16) and 233 for 6 (Juyal 47, Gaikwad 46, Saransh 4-92) beat India D 164 (Axar 86, Vyshak 3-19, Kamboj 2-47) and 236 (Padikkal 56, Shreyas 54, Suthar 7-49) by four wickets
Left-arm spinner Manav Suthar first bagged 7 for 49 with the ball in the third innings, before smashing a six and a four during his contribution of 19 with the bat in what turned out to be the final over of the match. Those efforts helped India C successfully – yet nervously – chase down 233 against India D in the Duleep Trophy first-round game in Anantapur.
At one stage, India C had eight wickets intact when they were only 68 runs away from the target. But India D offspinner Saransh Jain triggered a collapse, as India C lost 4 for 26 in the space of 12 overs. Saransh first broke a stand of 88 when he had Rajat Patidar stumped for 44 in the 38th over before Arshdeep Singh had Patidar’s partner Aryan Juyal caught for 47 in the next over.
Saransh also dismissed Baba Indrajith soon after, while Axar Patel got Hrithik Shokeen. Suthar joined Abishek Porel at that stage, and they added 42 to ensure that India C crossed the line without any further hiccups, with Porel scoring a crucial 35*. Earlier, the foundations for India C’s chase was laid by Ruturaj Gaikwad and Sai Sudharsan adding a run-a-ball 64 for the first wicket. Both batters were also dismissed by Saransh, with Gaikwad hitting 46 off just 48 balls.
But the day had started with India D 202 runs ahead, and Axar, their top-scorer in the first innings, still at the crease. This time, Axar added 33 for the ninth wicket with Harshit Rana, before Suthar had the allrounder caught at long-off for 28 in the 57th over. Two overs later, Suthar bowled last man Aditya Thakare for a duck, and pocketed each of the last seven wickets to fall in India D’s innings.
The outright victory gave India C six points, as Suthar earned the Player-of-the-Match award for grabbing eight wickets in the match. Both teams next get into action September 12 onwards, with India C facing India B, while India D playing India A. Both matches will also be held in Anantapur.
