Srinagar, Oct 26: Fast bowling duo of Yudhvir Singh and Auqib plotted the collapse of the rival team before J&K’s batting mainstay Shubham Khajuria showed stellar grit and tenacity to put J&K in command against Services on day-1 of the Ranji Trophy Elite Group-A match at grassy, juicy and bouncy track of Sher-e-Kashmir Cricket Stadium here on Saturday.
Lieutenant Governor Manoj Sinha graced the opening day of the match with his benign presence at SK Stadium, who later-on was felicitated by the Sub Committee Members of JKCA including Brig Anil Gupta, Member-Administration JKCA; Mithun Manhas, Member Cricket Operations JKCA and Advocate Sunil Sethi, Member Cricket Operations JKCA, besides Majid Dar, Incharge Cricket Development Kashmir JKCA.
The quartet along with Member Cricket Advisory Committee, Mr Abdul Qayoom also honoured Mr Sharat Shridharan, National Senior Selector on the occasion.
Earlier, winning the toss and batting first, Services collapsed at 71 runs in 25.1 overs as fast bowling duo of Auqib Nabi and Yudhvir Singh showed extraordinary bowling skills to capture 5 wickets each and bundle the opposition out for a paltry total.
Nitin Tanwar and Pulkit Narang were the only two batters to cross the double figure mark, scoring 18 and 14 runs respectively, while mainstay batters– skipper Rajat Paliwal, Ravi Chauhan and SG Rohilla failed to contribute with the willow.
For J&K, Yudhvir Singh took 5 wickets by conceding 17 runs in 9.1 overs, while Auqib Nabi captured 5 wickets by giving away 29 runs in his 9 overs.
In reply, J&K rode on masterclass innings of 55 runs off 94 balls, studded with 8 fours and one six by opener Shubham Khajuria to end the day at 183/7 in 54.1 overs. Shubham Singh Pundir (29), skipper Paras Dogra (28) and Abid Mushtaq (16) were the other contributors.
Speedster Varun Choudhary was the pick of the bowlers for Services, who took 3 wickets by conceding 22 runs in his 13.1 overs, while PS Poonia bagged 2 wickets. AP Sharma and Jayant Goyat claimed one wicket each.
