Pandit guides Madhya Pradesh out harm's way

Chasing an eminently scorable target of 236 from 75 overs, Madhya Pradesh could only muster 158/7 as their final Ranji Trophy Central Zone clash against Uttar Pradesh ended in a draw at the Green Park in Kanpur. MP collected five first innings points to take their final tally to 19. They finished third in the group and qualified for the knockout phase unlike their opponents who bowed out of the competition with just 14 points to their credit.

After having resumed at 296/6, UP declared 13 overs into the day at 375/9, bidding for an elusive victory that would take them through to the next round at MP's expense. Rizwan Shamshad and Ashish Zaidi adeded 55 for the eighth wicket before the former was finally dislodged from the crease for 153 (242 balls, 16 fours). He fell to the occasional bowling of MP skipper Chandrakant Pandit. Zaidi hit a brisk unbeaten 29 off 30 balls.

MP slumped alarmingly to 98/6 in the 49th over and it looked as though UP might pull off a stunning coup as seamers Shalabh Sriwastava and Ashish Zaidi struck blow after blow. Zaidi (3/38) got the crucial wicket of Jai P Yadav trapped leg before for 36 while skipper Amay Khurasiya was run out for 13. Needing to play out the last 25 overs with only four wickets in hand, MP found their crisis man in skipper Chandrakant Pandit who made a battling unbeaten 47 to guide them out of harm's way.