A change in script and fluctuating fortunes paved way for some intense cricketing action at the Wankhede Stadium on Sunday. And as the five-day Ranji Trophy semifinal contest enters the penultimate day, very few were were willing to put a wager on who would win.Read it aloud and the task on Monday appears simple for Punjab: 68 runs to win with six wickets in hand. Pore a little further and the complexities come into view. The core of the Punjab batting—Ravneet Ricky, Reetinder Sodhi, skipper Dinesh Mongia and the dangerous Yuvraj Singh— are in the hut. At the crease, is the last recognised pair—Pankaj Dharmani and Gaurav Gupta. Also remember Punjab were dismissed for 126 in the first innings, with the last six wickets falling for the addition of 20 runs.Still, there was quite optimism in the Punjab camp. It stemmed from the 83-run unbroken alliance involving the seasoned Dharmani (47: 115b, 144m, 3x4, 1x6) and a plucky Gupta (34: 88b, 127m, 4x4). Earlier, Mumbai’s ninth-wicket pair of Nishit Shetty (69: 105b, 183m, 5x4, 1x6) and Nilesh Kulkarni (22: 94b, 133m, 1x4) struck a purple patch in the tattered second innings. Their 75-run association powered on Shetty’s enterprise and Kulkarni’s defiance saw Mumbai setting up a fighting target of 294 runs.Brief scores: Mumbai 251 & 168 (N Shetty 69; Gagandeep Singh 4-51, Rajesh Sharma 3-49) vs Punjab: 126 & 226-4 ( D Mongia 49, P Dharmani batting 47, G Gupta batting 34; Agarkar 3-60)
