Akash Vashisht’s century helps Himachal to 293/7 in Ranji Trophy match

Akash Vashisht's brilliant 114* helped Himachal Pradesh recover from 115/5 to finish the first day of their Ranji Trophy Elite Group D match against Hyderabad at 293/7 in 90 overs. Vashisht is still at the crease with Vipin Sharma

Hyderabad: Himachal Pradesh fought back brilliantly, thanks to a fine century by Akash Vashisht (114* batting, 156b, 16×4, 1×6), after being reduced to 115 for 5 at one stage, to post a healthy 293 for 7 in 90 overs at the close of play on the first day of the four-day Ranji Trophy Elite Group D match against Hyderabad at Atal Behari Vajpayee Cricket Stadium in Amtar (Himachal) on Saturday.

Electing to bat, the home team saw handy contributions from openers Sidhant Purohit (37, 119b, 5×4) and Ankush Bains (30, 49b, 3×4), who put on 53 runs in 16.4 overs before left-arm spinner Tanay Thyagarajan cleaned up wicketkeeper-batter Bains.

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Soon, lanky pacer S. Nishanth dismissed Ankit Kalsi (1) cheaply. A 50-run stand for the third wicket between Purohit and Pukhraj Mann (30, 81b, 3×4) was broken when off-spinner Rohit Rayudu removed the former in the 43rd over.

A couple of quick blows saw Himachal slip to 115 for 5, with Rayudu sending back Pukhraj and left-arm pacer Chama Milind dismissing Ekant Sen (9).

Then, a 94-run stand for the sixth wicket between Akash Vashisht and Mayank Dagar (36, 74b, 3×4) pulled Himachal out of trouble. Rayudu again provided the breakthrough when he got the wicket of Dagar.

Though Thyagarajan dismissed Mukul Negi (2) cheaply to leave Himachal in a spot at 212 for 7 in 71.3 overs, Vashisht continued to torment the Hyderabad bowlers in the company of Vipin Sharma (14* batting, 39b, 2×4) to put on an unbroken, crucial 81-run partnership for the eighth wicket.

The scores:
1st day: Himachal Pradesh 293/7 in 90 overs (Sidhant Purohit 37, Ankit Bains 30, Pukhraj Mann 30, Akash Vashisht 114* batting, Mayank Dagar 36, Tanay Thyagarajan 2/77, Rohit Rayudu 3/51) vs Hyderabad.