da supremo： Punjab wasted little time in bowling and batting themselves into acommanding position in their Ranji Trophy Super League match againstHyderabad on Sunday
06-Feb-2000Punjab wasted little time in bowling and batting themselves into acommanding position in their Ranji Trophy Super League match againstHyderabad on Sunday. At stumps on the second day at the PCA stadium inMohali, Punjab, after dismissing Hyderabad for 117 runs in their firstinnings, had replied with 127 for two.Play on the opening day on Saturday had been restricted to 32 minutesbecause of rain. Resuming at 17 without loss, Hyderabad found the seamattack of Sandeep Sharma and Gagandeep Singh too hot to handle andthey were shot out in just 49.3 overs. Nandakishore was the first togo and he was followed by VVS Laxman. Skipper Md Azharuddin was runout for one off seven deliveries. Thereafter wickets fell in a heapand only a gallant 31 by Vanka Pratap at No 7 saw Hyderabad cross thethree figure mark. Pratap, who came in at 54 for five, was ninth outat 114. Sandeep Sharma finished with three for 36 while GagandeepSingh had figures of five for 49.When Punjab batted, they lost the in form skipper Vikram Rathour (15)and Under-19 World Cup hero RS Sodhi (20) with only 56 runs on theboard. Both wickets were taken by medium pacer NP Singh. However, RSRicky and Pankaj Dharmani added 71 runs for the unbroken third wicketoff 26 overs to give Punjab the lead. Ricky, another prominent memberof the Under-19 World Cup squad, was unbeaten with 50 at close. He hasso faced 127 balls and hit five of them to the ropes. Dharmani, aconsistent run getter this season, has so far faced 81 balls for his33, hitting two fours.