Delhi fall to stinging defeat

Rajat Bhatia,with an unbeaten 56,was the last man standing as the visitors ended their second innings on 312,with precious little to mention except a second-wicket association of 207 between Virat Kohli and Punit Bisht.

Delhi had begun with glimpses of resolve in the first session. Kohli and Bisht walked in with well-defined roles and played them to near-perfection. Batting with an injured finger,Kohli warded off the early pressure by hitting through covers and square on the off-side,while Bisht stood firm at the other end. Kohli reached his third Ranji hundred from 132 balls with fifteen boundaries as Bisht ambled from his overnight 37 to a half-century from 125 balls.

Kohli got bolder after the introduction of Shukla,but also showed first signs of a lapse in concentration. He was handed one reprieve while on 138,when Shukla failed to latch on to a return catch. But intent on batting in the same vein,Kohli,on 145,tossed away his prize wicket with an uppish shot at mid-on as the first session headed to a close.

Shukla couldn’t bowl in the post-lunch session after the umpires expressed apprehensions about his bowling action,and Raina was called upon as replacement to exploit the considerable dust deposited outside the off-stump area. He struck with the third ball of the session,cleaning up Bisht for 79. And that was the swift beginning of the end.

Raina picked three wickets in his 17 overs on a low and slow pitch as the fragile Delhi middle order kept the fielders in the inner ring interested. Mayank Tehlan was struck on the pads trying to balance on the backfoot,while Abhishek Sharma was run out attempting an improbable change of ends. Piyush Chawla came in and claimed Sumit Narwal and Parvinder Awana to take UP to 12 points in the group,while Delhi totter at four from three outings.

Brief scores: Uttar Pradesh 536 vs Delhi 202 and 312 (V Kohli 145,P Bisht 79,R Bhatia 56 not out; Raina 3/31,Chawla 2/67)