Harsh Dubey dominated the proceedings by claiming nine wickets to effectively dismantle Madhya Pradesh for a total of 209 runs. After Nachiket Bhute claimed the initial wicket of opener Yash Dubey, Harsh proceeded to secure the remaining nine dismissals himself, finishing with figures of 9 for 53 despite a 72-run partnership between Saransh Jain and Atharav Mahajan.
In other notable performances, Punjab staged a remarkable recovery against Andhra. After slipping to 71/5, Salil Arora and Sanvir Singh both hit unbeaten centuries to guide their side to 276/5 by the close of play, bolstered by an unbroken 205-run sixth-wicket stand. Down to 71/5, Salil Arora (111*) and Sanvir Singh (100*) both struck centuries to stage Punjab’s recovery to 276/5 by stumps on the opening day against Andhra. Transferring the pressure back onto the bowling attack, the duo shared an unbroken 205-run stand for the sixth wicket.
Elsewhere in the tournament
- Angkrish Raghuvanshi and Sarfaraz Khan both scored fifties.
- Skipper Siddesh Lad narrowly missed his own half-century.
- Mumbai concluded the day at 247/6 after being inserted to bat first by Railways at the CCI stadium in Mumbai.
Karnataka moved into a strong position in Guwahati, ending the day with a 45-run lead over Assam. Rohan Patil contributed a brisk 89 from 87 deliveries, including 13 fours and a six, as part of a 129-run opening partnership with Mayank Agarwal, who finished unbeaten on 57. Patil struck 13 boundaries and a six in his 87-ball knock but fell agonisingly short of a century.
Tripura found stability thanks to Sridam Paul’s patient 86, which helped the side recover from a dire 28/5 against Saurashtra. Paul and wicketkeeper-batter Sentu Sarkar, who added 46, formed a 125-run partnership to avoid a collapse. Meanwhile, in Delhi, Services captain Rajat Paliwal anchored his team’s total of 266 with an unbeaten 111, crossing 7,000 first-class runs in the process. Sridam Paul’s patient 86 was the key to Tripura’s recovery after the Saurashtra attack left them reeling at 28/5 inside 19 overs. After his team was reduced to 27/3, the captain anchored the innings, making sure they get to a respectable 266 in their first essay, coming in at No.5. He crossed 7000 first class runs, in the process.
Tamil Nadu’s batting display was anchored by Pradosh Ranjan Paul’s unbeaten 138, helping the side reach 320/4 against Chandigarh, supported by half-centuries from N Jagadeesan and Baba Indrajith. In Ahmedabad, Gujarat’s Aarya Desai missed a century by five runs, but strong contributions from Urvil Patel and Vishal Jayswal helped the team recover from 182/4. And a handy cameo down the order, none of the Bengal batters showed up against Maharashtra, besides Abhishek Porel’s quick half-century. Put in to bat first, Bengal were down to 37/4 when Porel arrived, and slammed 54 in 67 balls – eight boundaries included – to stage somewhat of a recovery. He was well supported by N Jagadeesan (52) and later Baba Indrajith (51) as TN dominated the proceedings in Chandigarh. But helped set up Gujarat’s 300-run day against Kerala in Ahmedabad, aarya Desai missed out on a century by just five runs. He put on a 116-run stand with Abhishek Desai to set the platform. Later, Urvil Patel (63*) and Vishal Jayswal (50*) too forged a 111-run unbeaten stand to bail the team in the second half after they slipped to 182/4. Snehal Kauthankar’s unbeaten 116 was pivotal to Goa’s recovery after they were reduced to 54/4 having opted to bat first against Bihar at home.
Bowling highlights included Mayank Mishra’s six-wicket haul for Uttarakhand, which kept Haryana to 153. In Dharamsala, Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan engaged in a high-turnover day; Abhishek Kumar and Sahil Dhiwan both took five-wicket hauls, with Himachal Pradesh eventually establishing a 75-run lead. Additionally, Ritesh Bhatkal and Shikhar Shetty claimed five wickets each to skittle Assam for 135, while Baroda reached 269/6 against hosts Kanpur behind Dhruv Patel’s 124. Angkrish Raghuvanshi (78) and Sarfaraz Khan (55) both hit fifties while skipper Siddesh Lad (47) missed out on his as Mumbai racked up 247/6 after being put in to bat first by Railways at the CCI stadium in Mumbai. Dhruv Patel’s 124 proved crucial to Baroda as they finished day 1 on a respectable 269/6 in Kanpur. The opener stitched two substantial partnerships – worth 88 with Shashwat Rawat (47) and 108 with Mitesh Patel (49) – to keep them going after Baroda were down to 54/2.
