Ranji Trophy semifinal: Kerala in commanding position, Azharuddeen becomes first Malayali player to smash century in semifinal

AHMEDABAD: Kerala remains in a commanding position after skillfully resisting Gujarat’s bowling attack on the second day of the Ranji Trophy semifinal. At the end of play on Day 2, Kerala stood strong at 418 for 7. The highlight of Kerala’s innings was Mohammed Azharuddeen’s unbeaten century, which solidified their position. Azharuddeen remains not out on 149 off 303 balls, alongside Aditya Sarwate, who is on 10 runs at the crease.

Resuming their first innings at 206 for 4, Kerala suffered an early blow on the second ball of the day when captain Sachin Baby was dismissed for 69 by Arzan Nagwaswalla. However, a crucial partnership between Salman Nizar (52) and Azharuddeen for the sixth wicket once again rescued Kerala. The duo stitched together a partnership of 149 runs off 368 balls, marking their third-century stand of the season.

Both batsmen approached the innings with great caution. Azharuddeen, playing shots to all corners of the ground, reached his century off 175 balls, marking his second Ranji Trophy century. Salman Nizar, on the other hand, reached his half-century with a six over long-on. However, right after completing his fifty, Salman was trapped LBW by Vishal Jaiswal.

Debutant Ahmed Imran then contributed 24 runs before being dismissed. Arzan Nagwaswalla was the standout bowler for Gujarat, taking 3 wickets, while Priyajit Singh Jadeja, Ravi Bishnoi, and Vishal Jaiswal took one wicket each.