CHANDIGARH, OCT 28 : The three-day match between Punjab and Himachal for the Vijay Merchant Trophy ended in draw at Dhruv Pandove Cricket Stadium in Patiala.
Resuming at overnight 15 for no loss Punjab ended the day on 200 for 5 in 56 overs. The highlight of the Punjab innings was a 2nd wicket partnership of 140 runs between skipper Shubhman Gill and Abhishek Sharma. Shubhman Gill missed his century by 6 runs when he was caught by Jamwal at extra cover off R.R.Rana for 94 off 114 balls inclusive of 10 boundaries. Abhishek Sharma fell to a catch in the covers by A.V. Thakur of R.R. Rana for 50 of 66 balls with 7 boundaries.
Rahul Kashyap remained unbeaten on 40 off 89 balls inclusive of 5 boundaries. For Himachal A.R. Thakur 2 for 13 and R.R. Rana 2 for 37 were the main wicket takers. Himachal got 3 points for the first innings lead while Punjab got one point.. Punjab finished their North zone league engagements with a tally of 18 points from 4 matches to occupy the top slot.
Brief scores:
Punjab (Ist innings): 235 all out in 59.3 overs (Abhishek Sharma 101, Prabhsimran 43, Shubhman Gill 41, Ayush Jamwal 6 for 83).
Himachal (Ist innings): 272 all out in 116.5 overs (Ritik Singh 115, Siddharth Purohit 44, Ayush Jamwal 32, Resham Sharma 3 for 57, Prince Balwant Rai 3 for 18 and Akshdeep Dahri 2 for 53).