Sheldon Jackson hit a strokeful half century while Ravindra Jadeja made a crucial unbeaten 48 to guide hosts Saurashtra to a three-wicket win over Railways in a Group A Ranji Trophy match on Thursday. Saurashtra lost seven wickets while chasing 184 for an outright win, but Ravindra Jadeja (48 not out) held his nervous along with Kamlesh Makwana (14 not out) to take their side to a victory at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium here. Jackson's 55-ball 54, which had eight fours and two sixes proved to be the difference among the two sides. Saurashtra were four wickets down for 65 at one stage, but then Jackson and Jadeja pulled the team out of trouble. Jadeja, who reamined unbeaten on 178 in the first innings, carried on his form and responded to his team's call. Earlier, Saurashtra bowlers did a descent job to bundle out Railways for 331 in their second innings and ensure that the target remained below 200. Dharmendrasinh Jadeje (5/95) turned out to be the stand out bowler for Saurashtra. For Railways, Harsh Tyagi scored a valint 93 but his efforts went in vein. The win gave Saurashtra full six points. Brief Scores: At Rajkot: Railways 200 and 331 (Harsh Tyagi 93) vs Saurashtra 348 all out and 186/7 (Sheldon Jackson 54, Ravindra Jadeja 48 not out); Saurashtra won by three wickets. Saurasthra 6 points. At Vadodara: Baroda 322 and 410/5 declared (Vishnu Solanki 175) vs Maharashtra 268 and 217/2 (Ruturaj Gaikwad 118 not out). Match drawn. Baroda 3 points, Maharasthra 1 point. At Valsad: Gujarat 538/7 declared and 167/5 (Manprit Juneja 50 not out) vs Chhattisgarh 420 (Vishal Kushwah 159). Match drawn. Gujarat 3 points, Chhattishgarh 1 point. At Nagpur: Vidarbha 307 and 228 vs Karnataka 378 and 76 Match drawn. Karnataka 3 points, Vidarbha 1 point. Ranji Group C: Rajasthan, UP, Assam notch up wins Jaipur, Nov 15 (PTI) Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Assam registered wins in their respective Elite Group C Ranji Trophy matches played across different venues in the country. While Uttar Pradesh thrashed hosts Odisha by 10 wickets in Bhubaneswar, Assam defeated Tripura by a massive 211 runs in Agartala. On the other hand, Rajasthan hammered Services by five wickets at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur, chasing a stiff 357-run target. Rajasthan rode on a magnificent 159 by their opener Amitkumar Gautam, who struck 13 fours and six other hits over the fence. Opener Gautam, who had fallen cheaply in the first innings, and his partner Chetan Bist (78) laid the foundation of the win with their 170-run stand for the first wicket. 23-year-old Gautam, a right-handed batsman, scored runs when his team needed the most. He hammered a listless Services attack as their bowlers leaked runs. When Gautam fell, the job was nearly done as Rajasthan needed just another 25 runs. Then R K Bishnoi (26 not out) and T N Dhillon (10 not out) took their side home with five wickets to spare as Rajasthan earned six points from the game. Brief Scores: At Jaipur: Services 228 and 264 against Rajasthan 136 and 357/5 (A V Gautam 159, Chetan Bist 78). Rajasthan won by five wickets. At Bhubaneswar: Odisha 256 and 221 (Sandeep Pattnaik 46, Shivam Mavi 5-68) versus Uttar Pradesh 437 and 44/0 (Madhav Kaushik 22 not out). Uttar Pradesh won by 10 wickets. At Agartala: Assam 327 and 239/6 Declared (Riyan Parag (80) versus Tripura 139 and 216 (Harmeet Singh 33, Mukhtar Hussain 5-73). Assam won by 211 runs. At Porvorim: Goa 468/9 Declared versus Jammu and Kashmir 271 and 242/5 (Ian Chauhan 113 not out). Match Drawn. Goa take first innings lead. Puducherry get three points against Meghalaya Puducherry, Nov 15 (PTI) Debutants Puducherry opened their account with three points by virtue of a first innings lead over Meghalaya in a rain-hit Ranji Trophy Plate Group fixture here Thursday. Resuming the day on 95/4 in their second innings, Puducherry were 129/7 when rain stopped play in 47.1 overs at the Siechem ground here. With cyclone Gaja looming large, there was no respite from a downpour as only 17.1 overs could be possible and home team got three points, thanks to their first innings lead. Puducherry had made 389 in their first innings before bowling out Meghalaya for 326. Rain remained the common feature in the second match of the group in Jorhat where the final day's play was abandoned without a ball being bowled as Arunachal Pradesh were lucky to bag three points, thanks to their first innings lead over Mizoram. Set a target of 410 runs, Mizoram were going great runs and needed 166 runs on the final day with eight wickets in hand. Taruwar Kohli was batting on 85 along with skipper Michael Lalremkima (15) but incessant rains meant that no play was possible at the DSA Stadium in Jorhat and Arunachal Pradesh were happy to secure three points. Brief Scores: In Jorhat: Arunachal Pradesh 220 and 331; 96 overs (Neelam Obi 80, K Yangfo 58, Kshitiz Sharma 57; Khadir 3/81). Mizoram 142 and 244/2; 59 overs (Akhil Rajput 124, Taruwar Kohli 85). Match drawn. Points: Arunachal Pradesh 3, Mizoram 1. In Puducherry: Puducherry 389 and 129/7; 47.1 overs (Marimuthu Viknesh 47; Gurinder Singh 5/44). Meghalaya 326. Match drawan. Points: Puducherry 3, Meghalaya 1.
