RAJKOT: Saurashtra's best batting show was not enough to break Andhra's stride in the Ranji Trophy Super League Group `A' match played here. Sitanshu Kotak fell to K. Shahbuddin's wiles after hanging on for three overs on day four, caught behind by M.S.K. Prasad.

Rakesh Dhruv's skill and temperament (36, 59b) deserves a place higher up the batting order. After Kalyan Krishna removed this gutsy all-rounder, the tail folded up in the face of a collective effort from Venugopala Rao and his mates.

Hard-earned win

A hard-earned 78-run victory, four points and a surge in confidence are the positives the visitor carries forward into the next clash. Andhra was wary of Kotak's staying powers despite the tricky conditions for batting at the Madhavrao Scindia stadium.

Shahbuddin got into the act by removing India under-19 player Ravindra Jadeja. The left-hander kept his eyes on the ball and positioned himself for a defensive prod; the incoming delivery brushed the shoulder of the bat and flew into wicketkeeper Prasad's gloves at chest height.

Shahbuddin picked up two for 48 in the second innings for a match haul of nine for 85. He delivered on demand and displayed control over line and length. With Kalyan Krishna (match haul of six wickets) he formed a formidable new-ball pair on the lively track, using the chilly climate to freeze the batsmen's responses against swing bowling. Saurashtra was bowled out for 195 in pursuit of a win.

Boost in tally

Andhra's victory boosted its tally to eight points and it now travels to Baroda for a crack at the Group `A' toppers. The bowling resources are in capable hands and the fielding support is excellent.

The scores:

Andhra — 1st innings: 215.

Saurashtra — 1st innings: 87.

Andhra — 2nd innings: 145.

Saurashtra — 2nd innings: K. Vaghela b Venugopala 22, S. Jogiyani c M.S.K. Prasad b Kalyan Krishna 12, S. Kotak c M.S.K. Prasad b Shahabuddin 58, C. Pujara (run out) 3, J. Shah c A.G. Pradeep b Faiq 14, P. Mehta lbw b Venugopala 4, R. Jadeja c M.S.K. Prasad b Shahabuddin 9, R. Dhruv c R.V.Ch. Prasad b Kalyan Krishna 36, K. Makwana c M.S.K. Prasad b Faiq 9, S. Jobanputra b Shahabuddin 15, Sandeep Maniyar (not out) 1, Extras (b-4, lb-1, nb-4, w-3): 12; Total (all out in 88 overs) 195.

Fall of wickets: 1-28, 2-56, 3-74, 4-113, 5-120, 6-134, 7-134, 8-166, 9-193.

Andhra bowling: K. Shahabuddin 26-10-48-2, Kalyan Krishna 17-4-47-3, Gnaneshwara Rao 7-2-19-0, Venugopala Rao 21-10-30-2, A.S.K. Varma 1-0-8-0, Mohd. Faiq 13-4-32-2, R.V.Ch. Prasad 3-1-6-0.

The scores: Super League:

At Mohali: Punjab 353 and 113 for three in 48 overs drew with Mumbai 348 in 131.5 overs (S. Kukreja 43, A. Muzumdar 119, W. Mota 74, I. Malhatra four for 91, Amanpreet Singh four for 72).

At Hyderabad: Hyderabad 205 and 255 in 118.2 overs (Ravi Teja 72, A.T. Rayudu 40, A. Yadav 59) drew with Gujarat 406 for nine decl. and 22 for one in four overs.

At Kanpur: Uttar Pradesh 264 and 194 lost to Karnataka 337 and 125 for eight in 39.5 overs (C. Raghu 50, R.P. Singh four for 30).

At Delhi: Baroda 244 and 253 for seven in 99 overs (C. Williams 106) drew with Delhi 493.At Chennai: Haryana 287 and 195 for five decl. in 64 overs (Sumit Sharma 41) drew with Tamil Nadu 169 and 52 for one in 27 overs.

Plate League: At Delhi: Railways 535 for six decl. and 57 for four in 13.4 overs bt Goa 360 and 229 in 90.2 overs (D.V. Redker 46 not out, S.S. Bandekar 70 not out).

At Cuttack: Jharkhand 279 and 179 for five in 81 overs (Ratan Kumar 49, Tariq-ur-Rehman 57 not out) drew with Orissa 433 for seven decl.

At Delhi: Services 208 and 337 for five decl. in 80 overs (S. Chatarjee 107, Jasvir Singh 71, Yashpal Singh 62 not out) drew with Jammu & Kashmir 332 and 128 for four in 47 overs (A. Bhatt 52, H. Hamid 41).

At Nagpur: Madhya Pradesh 221 and 210 lost Vidarbha 281 and 151 for three in 58.2 overs (F. Fazal 79 not out).

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