In one of the most thrilling matches of the Ranji Trophy, Delhi lost to Jharkhand by 15 runs in Sunday’s elite Group H clash at the ACA Stadium in Guwahati. Dhruv Shorey hit the hundreds in a valiant comeback against Delhi but the former champions lost in the final session to a spirited bowling attack from Jharkhand who kept his composure to take 6 crucial points.
Delhi lost the match in the final of the thrilling chase, with Anukul Roy taking the final wicket from Pradeep Sangwan to break the hearts of the former champions. Shahbaz Nadeem was the star with the ball for Jharkhand as he finished with match numbers of 10/141.
The defeat practically ends Delhi’s chances of reaching the Quarterfinals as they have only 3 points from 2 games in the 4-team group. Delhi have drawn their first game against Tamil Nadu after conceding a lead in the first innings.
Chattisgarh, who defeated Jharkhand in their first game, sits at the top of the table with 9 points while Delhi is at the bottom. Chattisgarh drew their second game on Sunday against Tamil Nadu after taking the lead in the first innings.
Only the leaders of each of the 8 groups in elite format qualify for the quarter-finals, with the exception of the lowest ranked team of all 8, which plays the leaders of the plate group before the quarter-finals.
Champions rise when it matters most.
Shahbaz Nadeem sacks another 5 fer to complete wickets in the match as Jharkhand beat Delhi in a 15-run thriller. #RanjiTrophy #ShahbazNadeem #LucknowSuperGiants
: Getty Images pic.twitter.com/MJ3SJOdT0p— Lucknow Super Giants (@LucknowIPL) February 27, 2022
DHRUV SHOREY HUNDRED IN FULFILL
After Jharkhand declared on 307/7, Delhi came out full guns, joining in at a brisk pace with openers Shorey and Yash Dhull. Left-arm spinner Shahbaz Nadeem broke through by grabbing Dhull, after which Delhi lost in quick succession to Anuj Rawat and Nitish Rana, with Nadeem and his spin partner Anukul Roy smashing in quick succession.
Dhruv Shorey continued to forge key partnerships with Himmat Singh, 34, and Jonty Sidhu, 59, as Delhi rolled on.
Shorey folded for 136 in 177 balls in the 56th over, after which they lost to Sidhu. Delhi slipped from 357 for 4 to 289 for 6, after which Nadeem kept a stranglehold on the Delhi batters.
Captain Pradeep Sangwan and Lalit Yadav added 20 runs for the 7th wicket but Lalit’s run-out turned the tide in Jharkhand’s favour.
Tailenders Navdeep Saini and Ishant Sharma were disappointed as they each fell to 1. Senior Indian player Ishant, whose future in the Test is in doubt, played an irresponsible shot and swept over the line before being rolled to Nadeem.
Sangwan and No.11 Vikas Mishra hung around but Anukul took the final wicket from Sangwan in the last over of the match at Guwhati to complete a thrilling win.
DELHI VS JHARKHAND, RANJI TROPHY 2022 RESULTS
Jharkhand (261, 307/7 declared) beat Delhi (224, 319) by 15 runs. Dhruv Shorey (136); Shahbaz Nadeem (5/83)
