Sai Kishore’s hat-trick propels Tamil Nadu to innings win; Sarfaraz’s 154 hands Mumbai the upper hand

R Sai Kishore took a hat-trick as Tamil Nadu defeated Uttarakhand by an innings and 66 runs in Chennai on Tuesday in a Ranji Trophy fixture, while Sarfaraz Khan’s 154 helped put Mumbai in a commanding position on Day Three.

Tamil Nadu posted 313 in their first innings and then bowled Uttarakhand out for 134 and 113, having taken a first-innings lead of 179. Uttarakhand resumed their second innings at 9 for one but were unable to cope with Tamil Nadu’s spin attack. Sai Kishore finished with 6 for 34 in the second innings and match figures of 10 for 74. Ajith Ram claimed the other four wickets in Uttarakhand’s second innings.

Sai Kishore struck in three consecutive deliveries, removing Lakshya Raichandani (19) before dismissing Saurabh Rawat and Aditya Rawat for ducks. Dega Nischal was the second-innings top-scorer with 25 off 61 balls as the rest of Uttarakhand’s lineup faltered against left-arm spin. The left-armer’s performance completed a comprehensive bowling display that ended the contest on Day Three.

Bengal beat Services by 60 runs, with Pradipta Pramanik taking 4 for 48 and Shahbaz Ahmed 3 for 44 to finish the job. Uttar Pradesh overcame Goa by 68 runs after Yash Kasvankar recorded his second five-wicket haul of the match; UP were bowled out for 197 in the second innings to set Goa a target of 235, and Kartik Yadav then returned a five-wicket haul to restrict the chase.

Tripura were reduced to 54 for five before captain Manisankar Murasingh counter-attacked, scoring 161 off 160 balls to avert an innings defeat; his innings forced Assam to bat again but Assam chased the target down and won by nine wickets. Sikkim registered an innings and 328-run victory over Arunachal Pradesh after declaring at 572 for five, with Gurinder Singh making 146 and Satyajeet Bachhav taking 5 for 27 in Arunachal’s second innings of 123.

Baroda completed a 10-wicket win over Bihar after Bhargav Bhatt’s 6 for 53 sparked a collapse that saw Bihar slip from 203 for two to 251, leaving Baroda with just two runs to get. Punjab gained the upper hand against Chhattisgarh when Harpreet Brar produced career-best figures of 7 for 56 to enforce the follow-on; Amandeep Khare’s 91 was not enough to prevent his side being asked to bat again.

Ruturaj Gaikwad made an unbeaten 101 at No. 7 for Maharashtra while Ankit Bawne remained not out on 169 as Maharashtra built a 358-run lead. In Mumbai’s match, Sarfaraz Khan struck 19 fours and put together two major stands: 68 with Siddhesh Lad (87) and a 210-run partnership with Akash Anand, who scored 117 off 239 balls with 14 fours, as Mumbai declared at 528 for eight. Himachal Pradesh finished Day Three at 144 for three, trailing by 384 runs, with Pukhraj Mann unbeaten on 38 and Vaibhav Kalita on 21.

Hyderabad’s K Himateja hit an unbeaten 123 to set Andhra a target of 398, with Tanay Thyagarajan adding an unbeaten half-century. Manan Hingrajia’s century and Jaymeet Patel’s 72 helped Gujarat fight back against Delhi, while Saurashtra edged ahead of Karnataka for the first-innings lead thanks to Samar Gajjar’s 79 and Arpit Vasavada’s 65, and a 40-run ninth-wicket stand between Parth Bhut and Jaydev Unadkat. Railways replied to Rajasthan’s 497 by reaching 305 for six, featuring Bhargav Merai (73), Eshaan Goyal (64) and Ravi Singh (53), and Sedezhalie Rupero remained unbeaten on 108 off 297 balls as Nagaland sought a first-innings lead against Mizoram.

Mumbai’s declaration and Himachal Pradesh’s 144 for three leave that match with one day of play remaining, with Mumbai in a strong position to press for a result on the final day.