P Aman Rao’s blistering double century put Hyderabad on a strong footing against Maharashtra on the penultimate day of their four-day Col CK Nayudu Trophy match at the Deccan Gymkhana cricket ground in Pune on Thursday.
At stumps, Maharashtra were 109 for two with Niraj Joshi batting on 59 and giving him company was Askhan Kazi on 21.
Earlier, it was an Aman Rao show all the way. The Hyderabad skipper who resumed his innings at 186 went on and on. With his overnight partner Rithish Reddy, Aman added 176 for the fifth wicket before Rithish fell. Aman contributed 20 off 139 balls, while Rithish made 48. Ritish was caught by A Sabale of Ayush Biradar for 48 off 115 balls with five fours
Aman and Pranav then added 100 off 153 for the sixth wicket with Aman making 60 off 70 balls and Pranav getting 33. Pranav was caught by Rushikesh off Biradar after making 33 off 83 balls with five fours.
Aman smashes unbeaten187 to put Hyderabad in driver’s seat against Maharashtra
Aman was the seventh wicket to fall as he was caught by wicketkeeper A Kawade off Rushikesh after making a massive 267 off 370 balls with 36 fours and six sixes.
Ghazi Abbas and Tarun Rajan added 45 off 40 balls for the last wicket. Ghazi made 19 and Rajan got an unbeaten 27 as Hyderabad reached 564 in 140.1 overs.
Ayush Biradar took four for 103, while Aneesh Joshi and Kiran Chormale got two wickets each.
In reply, Maharashtra lost Aniruddha Sabale (19) and Sharwin Uday Kisave (6) to pacer Y Harshith Sai but Niraj Joshi and Ashkan Kazi helped Maharashtra see through the day. Niraj and Ashkan have added 47 for the unbroken third wicket.
Brief scores: Hyderabad 564 in 140.1 overs (P Aman Rao 267, A Avanish Rao 83, Ritish Reddy 48, Pranav Varma 33, Tarun Raj 27 not out; Ayush Biradar 4/103, Aneesh Joshi 2/130, Kiran Chormale 2/96) vs Maharashtra 109 for two in 31 overs (Niraj Joshi 59 batting, Ashkan Kazi 21 batting; Harshith Sai 2/31).
Malakar hits ton; Andhra trail by 102 runs
In Ananthapur, hosts Andhra were fighting with their backs to the ball. After conceding a 185-run first innings lead to Assam, Andhra were 83 for three in 18 overs. Andhra still need 102 more runs to make Assam bat again.
Andhra openers Haneesh Reddy and Sri Vardhan added 23 with all the runs coming from the blade of Haneesh, who, however, fell soon. He was caught by R Dipak off Anurag Phukan for an eight-ball 23 with four fours and a six.
Munnangi Abhinav had to retire hurt on a duck and Garimella Teja was bowled by Phukan for 1.
Andhra were soon reduced to 39 for three as Vardhan was bowled by Ayushman Malakar for 15. However, Varun Satwik and TV Sai Sravan held the fort and took Andhra to 83 for three at stumps. Varun was batting on 20 and Sravan on 24.
Earlier, Barunjyoti Malakar struck a century to help Assam reach 387. Malakar made 129 off 284 balls with 14 fours. Rajveer Singh scored 75 off 194 balls with seven fours and a six, while Dipankar Paul made a 129-ball 66 with six fours and a six.
Down the order Ayushman Malakar contributed 47 off 92 balls with five fours to prop up the Assam score.
Brief scores: Andhra 202 & 83 for three in 18 overs (Haneesh Reddy 23, Varun Satwik 20 batting, TV Sai Sravan 24 batting; Anurag Phukan 2/27) vs Assam 387 in 141.5 overs (Barunjyoti Malakar 129, Rajveer Singh 75, Dipankar Paul 66, Ayushman Malakar 47; B Yashwanth 2/56, TV Sai Sravan 2/67, G Mallikarjuna 2/70, Munnangi Abhinav 2/8).
