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Ranji Trophy 2015-16: Assam fight back against Saurashtra following shaky start

Assam were 193 for seven against Saurashtra on the opening day of the semifinal of the Ranji Trophy cricket tournament.

Jaydev Unadkat finished with a figure 3 for 60 © Getty Images (File Photo)
Jaydev Unadkat finished with a figure 3 for 60 © Getty Images (File Photo)

Vadodara: Middle-order batsman Amit Verma held together the innings with a patient unbeaten 74 to guide Assam to 193 for seven against Saurashtra on the opening day of the semifinal of the Ranji Trophy cricket tournament on Saturday. Asked to bat, Assam were in a spot of bother as the first three batsmen fell for just 25 runs before Verma and KB Arun Karthik (59) stabilised the innings with a 127-run stand for the fourth wicket. Verma faced as many 210 balls during his unbeaten knock and hit 11 boundaries, while Arun Karthik’s fifty came off 144 deliveries with the help of six fours and one hit over the fence. UPDATES: Assam vs Saurashtra, Ranji Trophy 2015-16, 1st semi-final, Day 1 at Vadodra

But Assam lost the plot once again when Arun Karthik was bowled by Hardik Rathod as three more wickets fell in quick succession to make life difficult for the Eastern side which is featuring in its first Ranji Trophy semifinal appearance. At stumps, Dhiraj Goswami (7*) was giving Verma company at the crease with Assam playing 78 overs in the day. For Saurashtra, pace duo of Rathod (3 for 37) and Jaydev Unadkat (3 for 60) shared six wickets between them.

Saurashtra were excellent in the group stages of the competition and their dominance showed in the quarter-final match against Vidarbha, who they thrashed by an innings and 85 runs. Assam have been a surprise in this competition and will want their dream run to continue. They stunned everybody in the quarter-final, where they beat Punjab by 51 runs. Saurashtra finished top of group C, courtesy some impressive performances, losing just one along the way. Assam, on the other hand, had finished third in Group A, behind Vidarbha and Bengal.

Brief Scores:

Assam 193 for 7 in 78 overs (Amit Verma 74*, KB Arun Karthik 59; Hardik Rathod 3 for 37, Jaydev Unadkat 3 for 60) vs Saurashtra.

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