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Ranji Trophy: Punjab carve out impressive win against J&K
Punjab logged six points with this win and will now take on Madhya Pradesh in their next Ranji Trophy game
Riding high on fantastic knocks from opener Abhishek Sharma (83 off 47 balls) and captain Mandeep Singh (45 not out off 39 balls) in their second innings, Punjab recorded an impressive four-wicket win over Jammu & Kashmir in the Ranji Trophy match played at the IS Bindra PCA Stadium in Mohali on Friday.
Needing 205 runs to win the game, host Punjab scored 210 runs in 24.5 overs losing six wickets in their second innings. Opener Abhishek was the chief architect of the win for Punjab as he hammered solid 83 runs off 47 balls. He hit four sixes and nine fours. The other opener Prabhsimran Singh was also solid and contributed 31 runs off 29 balls. After Abhishek perished, Mandeep Singh did not let the momentum go away and played dominantly. He remained unbeaten on 45 off 39 balls along with Mayank Markande on 14 runs off five balls.
The visitors were bowled out for 260 runs in their second innings. Pacer Baltej Singh claimed five wickets for Punjab. Earlier Punjab had taken a first innings lead of 56 runs. J&K had scored 212 in their first innings while Punjab had responded with 268.
Punjab logged six points with this win and will now take on Madhya Pradesh in their next game.
Meanwhile, the game between Chandigarh and Vidarbha was drawn as no play could take place due to wet conditions at the Sector 16 stadium in Chandigarh. The UT cricket association ground staff failed to provide a playable pitch despite it being a sunny day.
Overnight rain kept the pitch and the ground wet the whole day and no play could take place on the last day of the match. Vidarbha declared 307/6 in their first innings while Chandigarh were 16-1 when the match was called off.
