Jaipur: A fighting half century by wicket-keeper Rohit Jhalani (52 batting) and his unbroken stand of 82 runs with tailender Sanjeev Sharma for the seventh wicket kept hosts Rajasthan in the hunt for a first innings lead on the penultimate day of its Ranji Trophy Group 'A' match against defending champions Railways. Replying to Railways first innings score of 384, Rajasthan reached 282 for six at stumps on the third day on Tuesday after resuming on its overnight score of 92 without loss. The hosts lost wickets at regular intervals and after the departure of Anshu Jain (47), Vineet Saxena (46), Rahul Kanwat (42) and Kaushal Devera (34) they were struggling at 200 for six before Jhalani and Sanjeev (26 batting) performed a rescue act. Seamer Harvinder Singh (2-53) and spinner Kulmani Parida (2-93) were the pick of the Railways bowlers. Santosh Sahu also chipped in, grabbing the wicket of Kanwat. Rajasthan began day three disastrously losing wickets in quick succession. Opener Saxena was the first to go caught by Raja Ali off Harvinder without disturbing his overnight score of 46. One down batsman Nikhil Doru was out for nought when Parida trapped him plumb in front with a straighter one. Kanwat and Jain then took the score to 122 before Parida struck again removing Jain caught by Shreyas Khanolkar. At lunch, Rajasthan was 151 for three with Kanwat on 42 and skipper P Krishnakumar on 7.

Tags: cricket, jaipur, rohit jhalani, sanjeev sharma, rajasthan, ranji trophy, railways, anshu jain, vineet saxena, rahul kanwat, kaushal devera, harvinder singh, kulmani parida, santosh sahu, raja ali, nikhil doru, shreyas khanolkar, p krishnakumar.