Ranji Trophy: Wary Delhi eye winning return against Jharkhand

KOLKATA: With just two rounds remaining before the Ranji Trophy pauses for the BCCI’s white-ball competitions, Jharkhand will be looking to play an aggressive brand of cricket and maximise their points haul when they take on Delhi in their Elite Group C clash at JSCA International Cricket Stadium in Ranchi starting Monday.Having collected four points from their opening two matches, Jharkhand find themselves in the middle of a tightly-packed group and know that a strong finish to the first phase could significantly boost their qualification hopes.“We need points now,” Jharkhand coach Ratan Kumar told TOI ahead of the contest. “Delhi are a good batting side, a balanced side and have always been a challenging team. Our focus is that we go all out in this match because good points here will help us going forward.”

Delhi, led by Ayush Badoni, arrive with just three points from two games and will also see the fixture as an opportunity to move up the table. Badoni and Priyansh Arya are the visitors’ biggest batting threats after producing massive scores in the drawn match against Gujarat, with Arya falling agonisingly short of a double century on 199 and Badoni hammering 217.Jharkhand began their campaign by securing three points against Kerala after taking a first-innings lead at home before fighting hard for a draw against Maharashtra in Pune.

Young opener Shikhar Mohan starred in that escape act with a century in the second innings, but the hosts will be without him this week after his maiden India A call-up for the final two unofficial Tests in New Zealand.While Mohan’s absence leaves a sizeable void at the top, Ratan is confident others can step up.

“Shikhar was batting very well and has gone for India duty. But we cannot keep thinking about the player who is not there. The boys who get opportunities now have to make them count,” he said.Aryaman Sen is expected to be among the contenders to fill the opening slot, while veteran batter Kumar Deobrat is also under consideration. The coach also backed opener Sharandeep Singh, whose highest score this season remains 33.“He has not got the returns he would have wanted in the first two matches, but we have full confidence in him,” Ratan said.