Ranji Trophy | Abhirath and Himateja’s tons help Hyderabad take control against Chhattisgarh

Hyderabad dominates Chhattisgarh in the Ranji Trophy, led by centuries from Abhirath and Himateja, extending their first-innings lead.

Out of the qualification race, there was no sense of urgency for Hyderabad as it ground Chhattisgarh to dust to seize control of their Ranji Trophy contest at the Gymkhana Ground here on Friday.

After Mohammed Siraj’s four-wicket haul helped dismiss the visitor for 283 on the opening day, centuries from Abhirath Reddy and K. Himateja powered Hyderabad to a 132-run lead at the close of Day 2.

Aman Rao and Abhirath split aggressor-anchor duties early to set the tempo. The former found the fence regularly to keep the scoreboard moving and reached his half-century within the first hour of play. His innings, however, ended when a miscued lofted shot made for a simple catch at mid-off for Dev Aditya Singh.

Abhirath. | Photo Credit: FILE PHOTO: G. MOORTHY

Rahul Singh announced his intent with a straight six off Shubham Agrawal early in his innings. His enterprising knock, however, came to an end when he edged to wicketkeeper Mayank Verma.

Abhirath stuck to his defensive game, bringing up his half-century off 85 balls. With Himateja for company, Hyderabad slashed Chhattisgarh’s advantage to just 83 runs by lunch.