NEW DELHI: Ignored for the two-Test series against South Africa, batting stalwart Cheteshwar Pujara struck a fine unbeaten century as defending champions Saurashtra dominated the Jharkhand bowlers, scoring 406/4 on Day 2 of the Ranji Trophy opening round Group A match in Rajkot.
Pujara was on 157 not out at stumps in company of Prerak Mankad, who stood at 23.
On the opening day, Saurashtra bowlers restricted Jharkhand to a mere 142 runs with Chirag Jani claiming his maiden five-for in First-Class cricket. With contributions from Harvik Desai (85), Sheldon Jackson (54), and Arpit Vasavada (68), Saurashtra soared to a commanding 264-run lead.
Overnight batters Harvik and Jackson didn’t last long on day 2, though the duo managed a 108-run partnership for the second wicket to give the hosts a good platform to build on.
Pujara found the gaps and occasionally punished the loose deliveries, consuming 239 deliveries for his 157 that was studded with 19 boundaries.
His 146-run partnership with Vasavada helped the hosts post an imposing total, one which could help them win by an innings and garner a bonus point.
Jharkhand bowlers were woefully ill-equipped to match the batting prowess of the team led by India pacer Jaydev Unadkat with all their six bowlers going for plenty of runs.
Brief scores:
At Rajkot: Jharkhand 142 in 49 overs vs Saurashtra 406/4 in 119 overs (Harvik Desai 85, Sheldon Jackson 54, Cheteshwar Pujara not out, Arpit Vasavada 68).
At Solapur: Manipur 137 in 54.1 overs & 85/4 in 39 overs (Hitesh Walunj 3/21) vs Maharashtra 320 in 81.2 overs (Siddhesh Veer 58, Kedar Jadhav 56, Ankit Bawne 153; Bishworjit Konthoujam 4/77).
At Nagpur: Services 241 in 87.5 overs (Rajat Paliwal 84, Lovekesh Bansal 73; Umesh Yadav 3/73,Aditya Thakare 3/39) vs Vidarbha 191/8 in 74 overs (Akshay Wadkar 59; Varun Choudhary 4/44).
At Rohtak: No play between Rajasthan and Haryana due to bad light.
(With inputs from PTI)