Highly-Rated By R Ashwin, Vimal Khumar Misses Double Hundred As Tamil Nadu Dominate Nagaland In Ranji Trophy

Tamil Nadu’s top order turned on the style in Chennai as Vimal Khumar and Pradosh Ranjan Paul powered the hosts to a mammoth 399/2 on Day 1 of their Ranji Trophy Elite Group A clash against Nagaland.

Brought in for the unwell B Sachin, Vimal (189 off 224 balls) made the most of his opportunity, cracking 28 fours in a classy knock that nearly became a double hundred. Partnering him, Pradosh remained unbeaten on 156 off 252 balls, finding the fence 19 times as the duo added a stunning 307-run stand for the second wicket.

Vimal finally fell to Ronit More (1/33) in the 76th over, caught by Jonathan, while debutant S R Athish (14) was the only other wicket to fall. At stumps, Pradosh was going strong alongside *Andre Siddharth (30)**.

Rated highly by

R Ashwin, Vimal showed why, missing out on a maiden double only after a brief lapse in concentration.

Elsewhere in the Ranji Trophy

In Vizianagaram: It was heartbreak for Vishnu Solanki, who was left stranded on 99 not out as Baroda reached 230/6 against Andhra Pradesh on a rain-hit day. Solanki’s 183-ball vigil, studded with 12 fours and two sixes, rescued Baroda from 76/6 in partnership with skipper *Atit Sheth (65)**. Debutant seamer K Saiteja impressed for Andhra with 4/28.

In Nagpur: Openers Shikhar Mohan (60)* and Sharandeep Singh (46)* gave Vidarbha a flying start, reaching 119/0 in 38 overs against Jharkhand. Both sides are fresh off big innings wins in their previous matches.

In Kanpur: A string of 50s from Sandeep Pattnaik (53), Govinda Poddar (64), and Sambit S Baral (59)* lifted Odisha to 243 all out against Uttar Pradesh. For UP, Shivam Sharma led the attack with 3/65, while Shivam Mavi and Vipraj Nigam chipped in with two apiece.

Brief Scores

Tamil Nadu 1st innings: 399/2 in 90 overs (Vimal Khumar 189, Pradosh Ranjan Paul 156*; Ronit More 1/33) vs Nagaland.

Baroda 1st innings: 230/6 in 79 overs (Vishnu Solanki 99*; K Saiteja 4/28) vs Andhra.

Vidarbha 1st innings: 119/0 in 38 overs (Shikhar Mohan 60*, Sharandeep Singh 46*) vs Jharkhand.

Odisha 1st innings: 243 all out in 77.1 overs (Govinda Poddar 64, Sambit S Baral 59*; Shivam Sharma 3/65) vs UP.

(with PTI inputs)