Karun Nair, Ravindra Jadeja and Mohammed Shami star in Ranji Trophy round one
Karun Nair, Ravindra Jadeja and Mohammed Shami produced standout performances as the first round of the Ranji Trophy ended in multiple draws.
Karun Nair scored 155 for Karnataka against Andhra, his 27th first-class century, after managing only eight in the first innings. Karnataka declared their second innings at 337 for nine, setting Andhra a target of 194 that the hosts reached 51 for four before the match ended in a draw. Nair reached his hundred in 157 balls and 150 in 232.
Ravindra Jadeja scored 102 and took three for 40 as Saurashtra drew with Chhattisgarh. Jadeja was named player of the match. Mohammed Shami claimed three wickets in Madhya Pradesh's first innings against Jammu and Kashmir, while Avesh Khan took three in the second innings of the drawn match. Vidarbha completed a 160-run win over Puducherry, powered by Akshay Wadkar's 198.
Tushar Deshpande took a hat-trick for Mumbai against Chandigarh. Punjab and Assam also finished drawn after multiple centuries on both sides.
CricHubb Take
Nair's response after a first-innings failure underlines why selectors keep faith with experienced middle-order players who can still convert starts into big scores on wearing pitches.