Manishankar Murasingh produced a spectacular all-round show as Tripura set Punjab a target of 240 in their Ranji Trophy Group F match here on Friday.
Murasingh first grabbed 6 for 8 and shared nine wickets with his new ball partner Ajoy Sarkar to bundle out Punjab, the group leaders, for 120 in reply to Tripura’s 120 all out in the first innings.
Resuming at the overnight score of 79 for seven, the remaining Punjab batters added just 41 runs.
Punjab were dismissed in 37.4 overs, conceding a slender lead of seven runs. Wicketkeeper-batter Anmol Malhotra was Punjab’s top-scorer with 30 runs.
Tripura were in a precarious position at 73 for six in their second innings before Murasingh, coming out to bat at no 8, smashing two sixes and 10 fours en route to a thrilling 91-ball 85.
He was ably supported by Subham Ghosh (55 from 103 balls; 6x4s, 2x6s) as the duo put on 132 runs for the seventh wicket before Tripura were bowled out for 232 in 65.5 overs.
The match is set for a pulsating finish with Punjab needing 240 runs with two days remaining.
Punjab lead Group F with 10 points, two points ahead of second-placed Himachal Pradesh, while Haryana is at third with three points.
At the Palam A ground here, 16 wickets fell as Haryana put themselves on top against Himachal with an overall lead of 179 runs with 10 wickets intact after day two.
Resuming the day on 269 for four, Haryana posted 302 in their first innings before bowling out their opposition for 184 in 45.5 overs with Amit Rana grabbing 5 wickets for 58 runs.
In reply, Haryana were 61 for no loss at stumps on day two.
Brief Scores:
At Arun Jaitley Stadium: Tripura 127 and 232; 65.5 overs. Punjab 120; 37.4 overs (Anmol Malhotra 30, Anmolpreet Singh 29; Manisankar Murasingh 6/48, Ajoy Sarkar 3/47). Tripura lead by 239 runs.
At Palam A Ground: Haryana 302; 106.5 overs (Himanshu Rana 129, Nishant Sindhu 73; Siddhant Sharma 4/57) and 61/0; 21 overs. Himachal Pradesh 184; 45.5 overs (Amit Kumar 56, Akash Vasisht 40; Amit Rana 5/58). Haryana lead by 179 runs.
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