Published: Oct 30, 2015, 08:10 AM (IST)
Edited: Aug 31, 2016, 03:55 PM (IST)
Hello and welcome to CricketCountry’s live cricket coverage of the first day’s play between Odisha and Delhi, in the ongoing Ranji Trophy 2015-16 tournament. The Group A match of India’s premier domestic tournament will be played at the KIIT Stadium in Bhubaneswar, which is the home ground to the Odisha team. With two drawn matches and a massive eight-wicket mauling of Assam, the Odisha cricket team will take field with tremendous confidence of producing a good show in their backyard. But they will face tough competition from Delhi, who with two wins in four games are also high on confidence.
Delhi are sitting pretty at the top spot in the Ranji Trophy 2015-16 points table for Group A, as they have 15 points from four matches. They won against Vidarbha by 10 wickets and by 4 wickets versus Haryana, and drew their other two games against Bengal and Rajasthan.
Odisha have only 8 points from 3 matches so far in Ranji Trophy 2015-16. In the points table of the Ranji Trophy 2015-16, they are at the sixth spot with Bengal, Rajasthan and Haryana occupying the last three places.
Odisha started off their campaign in the Ranji Trophy 2015-16 with two drawn matches against Vidarbha and Maharashtra. But they found rhythm in the clash against Assam, as in an atrociously low-scoring game at the Barabati Stadium, they managed to register an eight-wicket win. Odisha bowled out Assam for 92 in their first innings, but ended up conceding a four-run lead to the touring team as they got shot out for 88. When Assam set a modest 142-run target, Odisha achieved it with only two wickets down.
Live cricket scores: Delhi 99/1 | Overs 48| Batting: Gautam Gambhir 35(148), Nitish Rana 15(29): Opener Dhruv Shorey was the first wicket to fall after a solid partnership of 74 runs for the first wicket. He scored a defiant 42 from 114 balls and his innings had seven hits to the fence. Skipper Gautam Gambhir is still going slowly yet steadily. He has so far faced 148 balls for his 35, and is really battling it out there. He has young Nitish Rana for company. Basant Mohanty is the bowler who picked the lone wicket. Play of 42 overs has been lost for the day due to rain and it will be early stumps. The play is expected to start a bit early tomorrow in order to make up for the lost time.
OUT! Dhruv Shorey b Basant Mohanty 42(114)
Live cricket scores: Delhi 51/0 | Overs 31| Batting: Dhruv Shorey 26(86), Gautam Gambhir 23(102): The play has resumed after the halt that caused by rain. Both the Delhi openers continue to bat defensively, almost at a snail’s pace. The unheralded Odisha attack has somehow managed to keep the Delhi captain Gautam Gambhir tied at one end. It will be interesting to see how the pitch behaves after the rain break.
Rain has stopped the play
Live cricket scores: Delhi 41/0 | Overs 25| Batting: Dhruv Shorey 24(77), Gautam Gambhir 16(74): Delhi have crawled their way to 41 without loss till lunch. Both Gambhir and Shorey have been very cautious as yet. The runs have come at a rate below two runs per over and it suggests that the Odisha bowlers have kept a tight line. 11 of the 25 overs bowled so far have been maidens. The Odisha bowlers would look to get some wickets post-lunch, hoping the Delhi batsmen to play rash shots trying to ease out the pressure that has been created so far
Live cricket scores: Delhi 25/0 | Overs 18| Batting: Dhruv Shorey 14(54), Gautam Gambhir 11(54): Delhi are playing without its regular opener Unmukt Chand, who’s a part of the Board President’s XI team that is playing the touring South Africans. Skipper Gautam Gambhir won the toss and elected to bat first. He’s playing with a new partner in young Dhruv Shorey and the two are going steadily at the moment.
Delhi won the toss and decided to bat first.
