Tamil Nadu gained the upper hand, securing a 74-run first innings lead against Bengal on the second day of their Ranji Trophy at the MA Chidambaram stadium on Thursday.

Meanwhile, Rajasthan pacers rose to the occasion and put up a spirited performance as they reduced Uttar Pradesh to 146/7 on the second day. Mumbai bowlers led by left-arm medium pacer Royston Dias raised the team’s chances of taking the crucial first-innings lead as they reduced Gujarat to 232/8 on the second day.

Mumbai eye first innings lead

Gujarat still trail by 65 runs and all their hopes are pinned on wicket-keeper Dhruv Raval (60*), who showed resistance despite being devoid of partners at the other end. Mumbai, courtesy all-rounder Shivam Dubey’s hundred, had posted 297 in their first essay.

Gujarat openers Kathan Patel (28) and skipper Priyank Panchal (31) added 49 for the first wicket. But when the two looked set for a big score, Dias broke the stand as Panchal edged to wicket-keeper Aditya Tare. From then, the Mumbai bowlers did not look back and kept picking wickets at regular intervals on a greenish Wankhede wicket.

Dias (3/52) was the most successful bowler and was ably supported by skipper Dhawal Kulkarni (2/50) and Shivam Dubey (2/45), who had a good time with the ball too. Part-time bowler Jay Bista also chipped in with one wicket.

Tamil Nadu take first innings lead

After ending their first innings at 263, built on Baba Aparajith’s superb knock of 103, Tamil Nadu struck back with medium pacer M Mohammed (4/39) and spinner Rahil Shah (5/46) ripping through Bengal batting line up to bowl it out for 189 in 65.5 overs. At close,were 12/1 at stumps, an overall lead of 86 runs.

Earlier, Tamil Nadu resuming at overnight 218/7 added 45 runs with Aparajith reaching the well-deserved ton. His 273-ball knock studded with eight fours and a six ended when he holed out to Manoj Tiwari of Pradipto Pramanik’s bowling.

The eighth wicket partnership between Aparajith and M Mohammed (24) yielded 64 runs and enabled Tamil Nadu push the total past the 250 mark. Aparajith, who came in at no 3, was the ninth batsman to be dismissed. For Bengal, young pacer Ishan Porel, who struck vital blows, emerged the best bowler.

Rajasthan dominate

In search of their fourth win on the trot, Aniket Choudhary (4/34) and Tanvir Mashrat Ul-Haq (3/39) wreaked havoc on the Uttar Pradesh batsmen as wickets kept tumbling at regular intervals.

Choudhary, a left-arm medium pacer, ran through the UP top-order as the hosts were reduced to 36/4 at one time. Experienced campaigner Suresh Raina (33) and Rinku Singh then tried to steady the ship as they helped their side pass the 100-run mark. But, then Haq bowled Raina to break their fledgling resistance. Haq also sent Rinku Singh and Saurabh Kumar back to the pavilion.

At stumps, Upendra Yadav (21*) and Shivam Mavi (9*) held fort as the hosts still trailed Rajasthan by 165 runs. Earlier, Rajasthan rode on Robin Bist’s valiant 96 and equally effective 93 by opener Amitkumar Gautam to post a competitive 311/9 in their first innings.

Bist, who retired hurt on 68 Wednesday, resumed his innings Thursday, and added 28 runs to his overnight tally. But the batsman again retired hurt Thursday. Meanwhile, Assam are in sight of an outright win after they bundled out Haryana for a paltry 97 in the first innings.