CHENNAI: Gurjapneet Singh and skipper Sai Kishore claimed four wickets apiece as Tamil Nadu bowled Uttarakhand out for 134 before reaching 85/2 on the opening day of their Group A clash at Chepauk on Sunday.
Gurjapneet returned figures of 4/34, while Sai Kishore picked up 4/40 to put Tamil Nadu in control. In reply, Narayan Jagadeesan and Pradosh Ranjan Paul scored 37 each as the hosts finished the day 49 runs behind, with eight wickets in hand.
Tamil Nadu, however, suffered an early setback when Vimal Khumar fell for a four-ball duck. Jagadeesan and Pradosh then added 64 runs for the second wicket. Jagadeesan struck three boundaries in his 53-ball 37, while Pradosh remained unbeaten on 37. Just as the partnership was gathering momentum, off-spinner Avneesh Sudha bowled Jagadeesan to bring Baba Indrajith to the crease.
Earlier, Tamil Nadu’s new-ball bowlers made the most of the gloomy conditions after Sai Kishore won the toss. While P Saravana Kumar kept things tight, Gurjapneet struck in the fifth over, removing Aarav Mahajan.
The left-arm pacer then dismissed Dega Nischal with a delivery that angled in from round the wicket before returning to over the wicket to induce Kunal Chandela into a drive. Chandela edged the ball to Baba Indrajith, leaving Uttarakhand in trouble.
Sai Kishore found assistance from the red-soil surface, extracting bounce and turn. Lakshya Raichandani struck three boundaries before falling just before lunch, caught sharply by Vimal Khumar.
Uttarakhand slipped from 41/4 to 44/6 soon after the break, with Kishore having Saurabh Rawat caught at silly point to claim his 250th first-class wicket. Sudha then counter-attacked, combining with the lower order to add 66 runs and revive the visitors’ innings. He took on the spinners through the covers before Kishore returned to dismiss him, leaving Uttarakhand at 110/7.
A late contribution from Mayank Mishra, who scored 33, lifted the visitors to 134 before they were bowled out in 56.2 overs.
Brief scores: Uttarakhand 134 all out in 56.2 overs (Sudha 54, Mishra 33; Gurjapneet 4/34, Kishore 4/40); Tamil Nadu 85/2 in 27 overs (Jagadeesan 37, Pradosh 37 no), trail by 49 runs