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Rajasthan made a confident start to their reply after dismissing Railways for 384 on the second day of their elite group encounter at Jaipur. The hosts were 92-0 with openers Anshu Jain and Vineet Saxena, unbeaten on 38 and 46 respectively.Earlier, overnight not out batsmen Yere Goud (49) and Jacob Martin (27) fell early as the defending Ranji Champions only succeeded in adding 102 runs before being dismissed in their first essay. For Rajasthan, left-arm quick Pudiyangum Krishnakumar and left-arm spinner Mohammad Aslam, who claimed three wickets each, were the most successful bowlers.At Wankhede Stadium,Mumbai, a century from opener Wasim Jaffer (106) and a 69 from all-rounder Ajit Agarkar helped hosts Mumbai gain a 179-run first innings lead. The contributions of the duo ensured that the hosts made 302 all out in reply to Delhi’s modest first innings total of 123. By stumps on the second day, Delhi had managed to reduce the deficit to 127 runs; openers Akash Chopra (33*) and Gautam Gambhir (17*) guiding their team to 52-0 in the second essay.A 118-run seventh wicket partnership between Nayan Mongia (70) and Irfan Pathan (54), meanwhile, helped Baroda reach 381 all out in their first innings against Tamil Nadu at Chennai. Valmik Buch, who made 30, was the other batsman who made a useful contribution for the visitors. When Tamil Nadu replied, Sadagoppan Ramesh (45) and Shridharan Sriram (66*) forged a 97-run second wicket partnership to guide the hosts to 112-2 at stumps.At the famed Eden Gardens ground, hosts Bengal were in deep strife replying to Himachal Pradesh’s first innings total of 290. The Tamil Nadu-born of-spinner Aashish Kapoor, who claimed four wickets for twelve runs, was the man responsible for initiating a collapse that reduced the hosts to 128-7 in their first essay. This after Devang Gandhi (63) and skipper Rohan Gavaskar (39) had put on 79 runs for the third wicket. But once Gandhi fell, wickets began to fall in a hurry. Left-arm quick Ashok Thakur, making his fourth appearance in first-class match provided able support to Kapoor snaring three wickets.In another elite group match played at Secunderabad, Andhra skipper MSK Prasad kept his team in the hunt for the first innings lead against Hyderabad. Prasad made a stroke-filled 91 not out while Y Venugopal Rao and Amit Pathak, weighed in with 59 and 51 respectively, as their team reached 274-5 in reply to Hyderabad’s 353.The Punjab-Orissa elite group match at the Barabati Stadium, Cuttack, for its part, was poised interestingly at the end of the second day’s play. After the hosts ended their first innings on 301, Punjab made 141-4. Orissa’s Sanjay Raul, who made 72, and Punja opener Ravneet Ricky, who made 51, were thestand-out batsmen of the day.Karnataka on course for an outright win against BiharAll-rounder B Akhil made 68 and claimed four second innings wickets as Karnataka piled on the pressure on Bihar at Ranchi. In the morning, Akhil’s stroke-filled fifty along with an overnight not out batsman Thilak Naidu’s 86 secured the visitors a handy 188-run lead. Faced with the task of avoiding an innings defeat, Bihar were soon in trouble. But captain Rajiv Kumar (31*) and Manish Kumar (13*) ensured that hosts lived to fight another day.At Indore, Abhijit Kale followed in his skipper Hrishikesh Kanitkar’s footsteps, completing a patient hundred to guide Maharashtra to 334 in their first innings against Madhya Pradesh. Leg-spinner Narender Hirwani, who claimed four wickets, was the most successful bowler for the hosts.When Madhya Pradesh replied, it was the turn of their captain Amay Khurasiya to lead the way with an unbeaten 91. Khurasiya’s swashbuckling 112-ball knock, studded with 15 boundaries, ensured that his team were 141-2 at stumps, despite both the openers falling for low scores.Haryana, for their part, were in sight of an outright win in their low-scoring plate group match against Jammu and Kashmir. At the Molana Azad Stadium, Jammu, the visitors were 52-3 in their second essay, chasing 82 to win. Earlier, Haryana, who began the second day on 102-5, reached 168 all out – a lead of 47 runs – thanks in main to a 51 from overnight not out batsman Shafiq Khan. Spinners Jagtar Singh and Ashwani Gupta claimed four and three wickets respectively for the hosts.When Jammu and Kashmir, batted for a second time, middle-order batsman Kanvaljit Singh made 51 to guide his team to 128 all out on a difficult pitch, securing them an overall lead of 81 in the process. With medium-pacer Vijay Sharma claiming three wickets to reduce Haryana to 32-3 in the fourth innings, the hosts suddenly began to nourish hopes of a surprise win. But Haryana skipper Ajay Ratra walked in that stage and made an unbeaten 35-ball 21 to ensure that his team needed just 30 runs with seven second innings wickets remaining to complete their second win in second matches.

Lancashire duly secured victory in plenty of time for lunch, giving Hampshire their second Frizzell Championship defeat of the season, which with the ECB imposing a 8 point penalty for a sub-standard pitch meant the home side finished their match minus five, having won three bowling points after Lancashire were dismissed in their first innings.The batting today reflected the dire situation at the start of day. Resuming at 54 for 4, still 174 from an unlikely win, John Francis and Zimbabwean Neil Johnson raised a slight hope, posting 27 runs before being bowled by Keedy’s second ball of the day. From then on it was a procession with John Wood polishing off the tail.The talk of the day was however the state of the pitch, and Director of Cricket Tim Tremlett issued the following statement …”Hampshire Cricket acknowledges that the Championship pitch versus Lancashire was below average but nonetheless feel harshly treated in having 8 points deducted”.”Nigel Gray is in constant touch with the ECB and we will be seeking further advicew and guidance to ensure that this situation does not re-occur”.Hampshire’s next home Championship match is not until August 14th, so much work will be done between now and then.

Essex have taken the Division Two title in the Frizzell County Championship, beating Nottinghamshire by seven wickets at Chelmsford. Nottinghamshire were already assured of promotion themselves. Essex began the day needing another 211 runs with eight wickets in hand. They lost Mark Waugh when the Australian had made 76 at better than a run a ball and had put on 125 with Will Jefferson who was joined by Aftab Habib. The pair took Essex to their target without wasting any time. When the Jefferson hit the winning runs off the bowling of the Paul Johnson, playing his last match for Nottinghamshire before retiring, the tall opener was on 165, with Habib on 57.Worcestershire were set 373 to win by Derbyshire – and got them with one wicket to spare. That last man was none other than Graeme Hick, who came in at number 11 suffering from a fractured thumb. David Leatherdale with 89 not out and Gareth Batty with 74 had made the win possible with a stand of 122 for the fifth wicket, Matt Mason, who went into this match with a first-class batting average of 7.50, scored fifty, but when the ninth wicket fell there were still 13 runs required. Hick scored ten of them. Kevin Dean finished a fine season with another five wickets.Glamorgan batted on to reach 528 for seven before declaring. M.J. Powell (Michael) was out for 92, while Robert Croft was 71 not out when he set Northamptonshire an unlikely 447 to win. Another M.J. Powell, this time Mark, was the man to hold up the Glamorgan bowlers with an innings of 108 as his side made 242 for six to secure the draw.In Division One, Warwickshire pulled of a stirring victory by three wickets against Sussex at Hove to secure runners-up spot behind Surrey. Warwickshire needed 401 to win in the fourth innings and thanks to a hundred from – that’s right – M.J. Powell (Michael again), ninety from Dominic Ostler and 79 not out from Dougie Brown, Warwickshire made it.Meanwhile the champions, Surrey, went on to 492 for nine before they declared with Adam Hollioake recording a double hundred and Ali Brown a mere single. Leicestershire were in all sorts of trouble at 11 for four before 68 from Neil Burns halted the slide. But the reprieve was only temporary as Tim Murtagh finished with five for 39, Leicestershire were bowled out for 142 and Surrey finished their triumphant season with a win by the little matter of 483 runs.

Anthony More, the curator of the Antigua Recreation Ground at St John’s, is a puzzled man. “I don’t know why people are saying that the wicket in Antigua is one of the slowest,” he says. “Two years ago, South Africa defeated us here, and we won against Pakistan on this surface the year before. So I am not at all ready to listen what others are saying.”More was a member of the West Indies ‘A’ side, a fast bowler who could not make it to the Test team because of the presence of the Robertses and the Holdings in the Caribbean side. He has played county cricket too. More is now more often seen running the roller across the wicket of the Recreation Club, trying to improve the nature of the pitch with a sincerity that can almost be compared to worship.The outfield of the Antigua Recreation Ground is the best-looking in this series thus far. The grass is present, but it has been rolled into smoothness. As the days pass by, it will grow. The surface of the wicket has been watered and rolled to make it harder and bouncier. More has prepared a wicket that almost guarantees an enjoyable Test match.Winston Benjamin and Andy Roberts took advantage of the ground’s sylvan surroundings to have a quiet chat. Benjamin is the coach of the West Indies under-19 side now. Five years ago, when the Indian team travelled to these islands last, Roberts was the president of the former cricketers’ association here. “Now I am only a former cricketer,” he announces with a laugh.The Indians are practicing at the ground adjacent to the hotel, while the West Indians will be doing so in the ground beside the airport. That is the system here; the participating teams are not allowed practice in the Test venue itself, simply because there are no such facilities provided in this ground.Any feelings that the practice field will be inadequate for the Indians disappear once the ground comes into view. The Indians are staying at the Jolly Resort Hotel, which is equipped not only with a cricket field but also a golf course.The main ground in St John’s has a pavilion named after its most famous son – Sir Isaac Vivian Alexander Richards. Andy Roberts and Richie Richardson also have two stands named after them. The Curtly Ambrose stand is not yet up, although the administrators are quick to assure that it will be soon.

Whoa there. Hold your horses.It’s about time a little straightening out was done on the cricket front.That’s to avoid some of the constant re-writing of history that is inadvertently, or perhaps that should be advertently, being done to cricket.Just as some of the great quotations of history are so commonly mashed up, so are some cricket facts.People may foul up Sir Winston Churchill’s famous words as Britain faced invasion in World War Two from the original, “I have nothing to offer but blood, toil, tears and sweat” to the sadly common “blood, sweat and tears”, who were after all, a very good rock group, but not a true representation of Churchill’s fighting talk. But they are wrong.All of which it might be said have nothing whatsoever to do with cricket.Ah, but there you are.It’s the mis-quoting that is the problem.And New Zealand cricket history is being done a serious dis-service by those who would perpetuate the myth that the Sri Lankan batsmen at the 1996 World Cup, bless their hearts, were the originators of the 15-over slog at the start of One-Day Internationals. In their case, Sanath Jayasuriya especially, helped them to a famous World Cup victory.But the facts are quite different.You see four years earlier, a big burly brute by the name of Mark Greatbatch, a batsman who had played a bit of rugby in his time, and another burly bloke, a bit shorter but who had played considerably more rugby, Rod Latham, took to the opposition bowling on several occasions. The North Stand at Eden Park took such a hammering it was pulled down a few years later.Oops sorry! It was pulled down but the Greatbatch-Latham hitting was only partly responsible, well, perhaps minutely.But check out the facts, especially in the games against the South Africans and the West Indies. Greatbatch wasn’t chosen for the two games against Australia and Sri Lanka and only came in when John Wright was injured.There’s no doubting the effectiveness of the Greatbatch-Latham combination. Against South Africa they scored 103 runs in 15 overs!They put on 67 in 11 overs against the West Indies a week later.Greatbatch scored 73 off 77 balls against India and New Zealand were 75/1 after 15 overs.Then followed with 35 off 37 balls against England.Fair chance that a recognisable practise of thrashing in the first 15 overs was well advanced before 1996, wouldn’t you agree?Certainly Greatbatch and Latham were the first successful duo in the art.It could be argued with little opposition that Glenn Turner developed the early assault years before anyone else, even if doing it all by himself, on the English county circuit.Kris Srikkanth started the same process in international matches for India in matches against Sri Lanka in 1982/83, just a month or two before Turner returned to the international scene from which he had been absent since 1979.Turner proceeded to show, in the one-day game what he had been doing in English county cricket for some seasons by toying with bowlers in the first 15 overs during England’s three ODIs tour of New Zealand in 1983 and it continued against Sri Lanka that same season.In his book, ‘Opening Up’ Turner described his approach, “My policy in such games was, when I felt in good nick and the ball looked as if it could be hit, to get after it.”In the first ODI at Auckland, Turner and Bruce Edgar put on 101 runs by the 21st over.In the second at Wellington, they scored 152 by the halfway stage of the innings. Turner scored at a strike of 100.Then in Christchurch, they failed. They scored only 64.In the Auckland match against Sri Lanka, Turner scored 140 off 130 balls at a strike rate of 107.69.But in a magnanimous show of bi-partisanship, all New Zealanders will admit that Australia might even lay claim to the initiation of the policy in one-day games, although it proved a oncer.The second final of the 1982/83 World Series in Melbourne saw Steve Smith and Graeme Wood put on 140 in 24 overs against a Richard Hadlee-less attack to well and truly sink New Zealand.Perhaps that should be enough evidence, or then again it might prove that ‘a little knowledge is a dangerous thing.’Sorry, as Alexander Pope originally wrote it, that should be “A little learning is a dangerous thing”.

The statement by Indian coach John Wright that Anil Kumble has to fight his way back into the Indian team made for interesting reading. Till a few months ago, the idea of India’s main strike bowler of the last decade having to `fight’ to come back to the team would have been unthinkable. Ever since his return to the Indian side for the tour of Zimbabwe and South Africa in 1992, Kumble has been a permanent fixture in the playing eleven. In fact, he played 60 Tests on the trot from Harare in October 1992 to the Test against South Africa at Bangalorein March 2000. No other Indian spin bowler has played in as many successive Tests.The 30-year-old ace leg spin-googly bowler from Karnataka has bestrode the Indian spin scene like a colossus taking 276 wickets in 61 Tests. The next best haul by an Indian spinner during the same period was less than 100 wickets. It did not matter if Kumble was generally a match winner only on home wickets. Indeed, the difference in his performances at home and away is quite marked. In 31 Tests at home, Kumble has 175 wickets at an average of 21.38 In 30 Tests abroad, he has only 101 wickets at an average of 39.46. Despite this, he still remained India’s first choice spin bowler and on quite a few occasions he has been the only spin bowler in the playing eleven. even on foreign soil.In Kumble’s absence, the Indian spin attack generally struggled to take wickets in the three Tests against Bangladesh and Zimbabwe at the start of the 2000-2001 season. With Kumble continuing to be on the sidelines thanks to the shoulder injury he sustained in Sharjah in October last year, tough times were predicted for the Indian spin attack, particularly in the series against the all conquering Australians. Who was there to take the wickets, it was argued even as we prayed and hoped for Kumble to recover quickly. The panic strickenselectors threw the net far and wide in an effort to find adequate replacements. Leg spinners, off spinners, left arm spinners, part timespinners et al were summoned to the camp prior to the selection of the team to take on the Australians but the cupboard seemed to be bare.We had all reconciled ourselves to the fact that the Indian spin attack was going to be harshly treated till Kumble returned when suddenly Harbhajan Singh burst upon the scene. Even as there were no other spinners worth their name, the young offie became the toast of the nation and the scourge of the Australians by taking 32 wickets in three Tests. By doing so, not only did he play a leading role in India’s astonishing comeback win in the series but he also did something that no one thought possible – push Kumble out of his placeas India’s reigning spin king. At the moment then, Kumble can no longer assume that his place in the side is assured. Once he recovers from his shoulder ailment he has to, in John Wright’s words, "fight" his way back into the side.This is certainly an unaccustomed and rather unwelcome role for Kumble. `Prima donnas’ do not generally like to be shoved out of their exalted status but then if this is a new situation for Kumble, it is not something new for leading bowlers. Kumble’s great contemporary Shane Warne himself has had to face competition from Colin Miller and Stuart MacGill, especially after his return to the game following treatment to an injured shoulder but took up the challenge boldly. Kumble is also made of sterner stuff. He can be counted upon to counter Harbhajan’s challenge as the country’s leading spin bowler ina healthy, competitive manner. But the snag is that there are no domestic or international matches for him to prove his fitness or that he has lost none of his skill. He says he hopes to be match fit and available for selection for the South African tour from October. "If I recover before the Sri Lankan tour in July-September, that will be a bonus," Kumble is quoted to have said.It is likely that neither Kumble and the selectors would be inclined to rush his return to international cricket. Infact Sourav Ganguly has already indicated this. So Kumble being ready and available before the tour of South Africa is unlikely. Unless Harbhajan performs very poorly on the tours of Zimbabwe and Sri Lanka, Kumble can only come back as the side’s second spinner. And there have been occasions, especially on foreign soil, that India have played only one spin bowler. So it is a challenging – if unfamiliar – scenario that lies ahead for Kumble. How well he rises to the occasion could well determine his future.

Canada, despite several key players missing or struggling through injuries squeaked out a thrilling victory over Namibia yesterday at Windhoek. The last time the two teams met in Toronto it was Namibia who came out on top with a last over win by two wickets. This time the results were reversed, with Canada obtaining the winning runs from the 6th ball of the 50th over.Canada started the match missing two key players, Nick Degroot suffering from damaged knee ligaments, and Muneeb Diwan a dislocated finger. In addition Sanjay Thuraisingam, who had missed the previous match with a respiratory infection, and Ashish Bagai, suffering from lower back problems, played although less than fully fit.Canada opened the bowling with Joseph and Codrington, and it was Codrington who made the initial breakthrough, bowling van der Merwe for 2. The pace bowlers were not effective however, and Walters and Keulder saw Namibia past 50 without further loss. The introduction of the spinners drastically slowed the run rate, with the batsmen unable to get either Davison or Seeberan away. Davison bowled Walters, and Seeberan dismissed Murgatroyd and Keulder. The Namibian middle order all contributed useful runs but no-one was able to build a significant innings. Davison chipped in with a second wicket, but Namibia stil seemed poised for a total of over 200 when Thuraisingam returned for a second spell. As Namibia strove to raise the tempo with the final overs approaching, Thuraisingam rapidly dismissed skipper DB Kotze, BL Kotze, and Snyman, finishing with the figures of 3/37 off his 10 overs, a courageous performance. Skipper Joe Harris bowled the final over, and picked up a second wicket as Namibia were all out for 170 with three balls remaining. Seeberan had the remarkable figures of 1/16 off his 10 overs, and Davison 2/29 from 10 overs.Missing Degroot and Diwan, Canada’s batting was not at full strength. The unusual combination of Davison and Maraj opened the batting. Davison took an agressive approach and hit three quick boundaries, taking the opening partnership to 32 before being bowled by Snyman. Chumney and Maraj added useful runs, until Louw dismissed both. Louw bowled superbly, and the Canadian bats found it almost impossible to score from him. He took a third wicket when Billcliff was caught by Walters for only 7. At 95/4 Canada were in danger of collapse, so Bagai chose a mostly defensive role. When Harris fell to Burger, Canada were still 48 runs short; Sattaur made only three before being bowled by Burger, and Canada were 132/6, with few overs remaining. Thuraisingam contributed a vital eight runs, Codrington was run out, and with only two wickets left, Canada still needed twenty to win. Bagai and Joseph were the heroes of an amazing last over win against UAE in Toronto, and the experience stood them in good stead, as they saw Canada home off the last possible ball. Bagai was unbeaten on 34, a patient innings, facing 102 balls in total, and Joseph made 9. Louw finished with the superb figures of 10 overs, 5 maidens, 3 wickets, for 8 runs.

Western Australia’s Duncan Spencer has tonight been handed an 18-month ban from all interstate and international cricket matches played under the auspices of the Australian Cricket Board (ACB). The penalty has been applied after the right arm fast bowler was found to have returned a positive drug test in February of this year.During a marathon seven-hour hearing before a specialist Anti-Doping Committee at the ACB’s Melbourne offices today, Spencer conceded that he had taken the banned anabolic steroid nandrolone prior to the start of the 2000-01 Australian season. But the 29-year-old, who has represented both Kent and Western Australia at senior level, testified that his use of the substance – which appears among a list of prohibited drugs under the ACB’s formal Anti-Doping Policy – was intended to help him relieve the pain caused by a succession of chronic back injuries.In handing down the suspension, the three-person tribunal condemned Spencer to the fate of being the first player in the history of the sport in Australia to be outed from the game for a doping misdemeanour.The panel, which consisted of a member of the Australian Sports Drug Medical Advisory Committee and judges from the Victorian Supreme Court and Queensland Court of Appeal, had the power to ban Spencer for a minimum two year period under clauses 8.1 and 8.2 of the ACB Anti-Doping Policy. But it instead exercised the option of imposing a reduced sentence under discretionary guidelines that allow the severity of such punishment to be relaxed where extenuating medical circumstances exist.The precise reasons behind tonight’s verdict will be made public next week.In a short statement read to journalists after the hearing, Spencer said that his sole motivation in using nandrolone had been to assist his recovery from back injuries that had already contrived to keep him out of representative cricket for six years.”These injections were prescribed to me to improve my everyday life as I had been suffering from chronic pain for the last six years,” he said.”The medication was not prescribed for sport. At the time (of taking the drug), I did not believe I would be able to bowl again, let alone to do so at the first-class level.”Spencer played 14 first-class matches for Kent and Western Australia between 1993 and 1994 before his injury problems first flared. After finally recovering to the point of full fitness, he returned to play six times at domestic one-day level for Western Australia during the 2000-01 season. It was following the last of those six matches – the Mercantile Mutual Cup Final against New South Wales on 25 February – that his breach was detected.In association with the Australian Sports Drug Agency (ASDA), the ACB has operated a process of random drug testing of the country’s elite-level players for each of the last three seasons. In Spencer’s case, he was informed of the positive finding on 29 March and the results were transmitted to the ACB five days later.ACB Chief Executive, Malcolm Speed, stated tonight that he was satisfied by the way in which the process had been handled.”No sport would be pleased that one of its players had been found guilty of this type offence but I am reassured by the fact that this player was identified and dealt with quickly through the ACB’s testing program and Anti-Doping procedures,” Speed said.”This decision sends a clear message that cricket will not tolerate any player taking prohibited substances and will move swiftly to deal with any person found to have breached the ACB’s Anti-Doping Policy.”But Speed also stated that a procedural error at the Western Australian Cricket Association (WACA) would need to be addressed.Spencer testified this afternoon that, on his return to the Western Australian team, he had not received a copy of the Board’s Anti-Doping Policy – a mandatory requirement for all state players. WACA General Manager, Rob Thompson, later conceded that this requirement had been overlooked.Speed also confirmed that the ACB has offered personal and career counselling and general support to Spencer to help him come to terms with today’s unprecedented events.

If a team had to win the Ranji Trophy title for the first time, they would no doubt choose to do it by a comprehensive margin on home turf, in front of their staunchest supporters, and against a team that rudely deprived them of the title the year before. On Saturday, Railways satisfied every one of those criteria to lay their hands on India’s premier domestic trophy for the first time in the team’s history.Setting their opponents a target of 391 almost guaranteed the hosts the title. Few teams today have the ability to survive two days on a crumbling track against quality spin, let alone chase massive totals with confidence and ease. The Karnail Singh Stadium pitch, as if doing its best to aid the local lads, co-operated by getting markedly slower and lower, aiding vicious turn as the final progressed.Railways skipper Abhay Sharma may have been tempted to even open the bowling with Murali Kartik, but he tossed the ball first to his opening bowlers – Harvinder Singh and Zakir Hussain – and they repaid him in no small measure.Harvinder Singh got rid of Nayan Mongia, promoted up the order, in his very first over. Four runs later, Zakir Hussain had Connor Williams caught behind, and Baroda were reeling at five for two.Atul Bedade, coming in at number three, was to offer the only resistance from Baroda’s side on the day. Zakir Hussain removed skipper Jacob Martin and Tushar Arothe as well, both batsmen departing for single-figure scores. Martin was trapped plumb in front by a well-directed delivery, while Arothe was caught behind with the score on 42, giving Abhay Sharma his third catch of the innings.Bedade and Bhoite then managed to steady a violently rocking ship somewhat, adding exactly 50 runs for the fifth wicket. Railways, meanwhile, introduced spin into the attack, bringing on Kulamani Parida; Murali Kartik, inexplicably, was brought in only after Jai P Yadav bowled three overs of innocuous medium pace.Parida broke the partnership by removing Bedade in the 25th over, the batsman having made 59 off 73 balls with 12 fours. Three balls later, Kartik, finally introduced into the attack, snapped up a return catch to dismiss Satyajit Parab for a duck. When, in the same over, Kartik had Yousuf Pathan caught in the deep, Baroda were starring down the barrel of the gun at 92 for seven.After the fall of Bhoite for 12 off 44 balls, Valmik Buch attempted to delay the inevitable, hitting two fours in scoring 10 off six balls. But Buch fell to Kartik with the score on 106 and, 20 minutes after lunch, Rakesh Patel attempted a wild heave off Parida only to have his stumps knocked back. Railways had completed a 277-run victory, a comprehensive margin that reflected their complete domination of this final.Last year, the Ranji final between these very two teams was dogged by controversy, Railways feeling done in by poor umpiring decisions. Baroda, this year, can only blame their batsmen for their debacle, although some serious criticism of a wickedly under-prepared track for a Ranji final would not be completely out of order.Elation reigned on the ground as soon as the last wicket fell, supporters rushing to garland Abhay Sharma with currency garlands and falling to their knees to kiss the wicket. Jacob Martin, at the presentation ceremony, gave due credit to Railways for their splendid cricket in the final, while Abhay Sharma lifted the Trophy appearing suitably aware of the historical significance of the occasion.

South Zone took the bowling honours on the opening day of their CK NayuduTrophy Semifinal amtch against West Zone at the Sunshine ground in Cuttackon Wednesday. After bundling out West for just 194, South Zone proceeded tolose three quick wickets to end the day at 53 for 3.Electing to bat, West made a solid start with openers JN Saha (41) and BJoshi (37) adding 72 runs in 19.1 overs. But the fall of Joshi triggered acollapse and the innings folded up in the 70th over of the innings. Only YTakowle (43) made any significant contribution. The wickets were shared byall around with Tamil Nadu medium pacer L Balaji (3 for 51) and Mohd Faiq(3 for 29) being the pick.South Zone in response made a shaky start losing TS Suman (4) off the thirdball of the innings, bowled by Kulkarni. Deepak Chougule (1) was the nextto be dismissed in the third over of the innings. Chougule was bowled byUday Kulkarni. Then Tahir Hussain and Arjun Yadav (29 batting) took thescore on to 46 when Tahir was caught by Kulkarni off S Yadav. Therafter,Arjun and ASK Varma (1 batting) took the team to stumps.