Ranji Trophy: Rawal ton helps Delhi take first-innings lead versus Mumbai

Delhi were in trouble on the second morning before Rawal (114) and skipper Himmat Singh (85) shared a big fifth-wicket partnership against Mumbai on Day 2 of their Ranji Trophy tie.

Vaibhav Rawal (114 -- 195b, 16x4) and Himmat Singh (85 -- 167b, 7x4, 2x6) helped Delhi claim the first-innings lead on Day 2 of their Ranji Trophy Group B clash against Mumbai at the Ferozeshah Kotla ground on Wednesday. At stumps on the second day, Delhi were 316/7 in 90 overs, a slender lead of 23 runs.

Delhi seemed set to fall way short of Mumbai’s first-innings 293 when they were reduced to 88/4 in the first session(PTI)

Delhi seemed set to fall way short of Mumbai’s first-innings 293 when they were reduced to 88/4 in the first session. But Rawal and Himmat combined for a fifth-wicket stand of 195 runs to help the home side nudge ahead.

Rawal isn't the most graceful left-handed batter going around, but he has proved effective in a challenging season for Delhi. He has now scored 396 runs in six games this season at an average of 49.5. He also scored an unbeaten 95 in Delhi’s second innings against Tamil Nadu. The 31-year-old made his Ranji Trophy debut for Delhi in 2012, but is only playing his 23rd first-class game in an indication of his stop-start journey.

“This century is very special for me. I had missed a lot of games in between. I was making a comeback this season,” Rawal told reporters. “We had to play ourselves in. Himmat and I were looking to bat the whole day. When you spend time, the conditions automatically become easier. We were looking to score runs off balls that were in our range.”

Bengal take massive lead

Bengal took a massive 256-run lead against Haryana in Rohtak in a Group A match after bowling out the hosts for 163. Bengal seamer Akash Deep starred with figures of 5/61. For Haryana, Sumit Kumar was the lone noteworthy contributor, staying unbeaten on 70 off 74 deliveries.

Brief scores (select matches)

In New Delhi: Mumbai 293. Delhi 316/7 (V Rawal 114, H Singh 85; M Avasthi 2/42).

In Rohtak: Bengal 419 (A Majumdar 145; H Patel 4/80). Haryana 163 (S Kumar 70*; A Deep 5/61).

In Chennai: Tamil Nadu 540 (P Ranjan Paul 153, V Shankar 112). Assam 120/4 (R Parag 48; A Ram 2/41).