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Punjab and Railways will face each other in the Vijay Hazare Trophy on Thursday, December 9, at the JSCA Oval Ground in Ranchi. Despite having some quality players in their ranks, Punjab failed to cross the line against Rajasthan in their opening fixture.
Punjab was bowled out for just 219 runs, after batting first. Their openers, Prabsimran Singh and Abhishek Sharma got starts but failed to convert them into big scores. The same was the case with Mandeep Singh, Ramandeep Singh, and Harpreet Brar. Gurkeerat Mann was the only significant scorer, scoring 67 runs.
Mayank Markande picked up a couple of wickets while Arshdeep Singh and Harpreet Brar grabbed a wicket apiece. However, Rajasthan won the match with an over and six wickets to spare.
Meanwhile, Railways lost their game against Services by five runs. Batting first, Services scored 254-8. Amit Mishra, Dhrushant Soni, Karn Sharma, and Harsh Tyagi picked up two wickets apiece.
Railways almost chased the target, coming agonizingly close, ending with 249-9. Shivam Choudhary (49), Akshat Pandey (44*), and Mrunal Devdhar (30) were their primary run-getters.
Railways will square off against Services in their opening game of the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2021-22 on Wednesday.
Railways and Services are placed in the Elite Group E alongside Goa, Assam, Punjab, and Rajasthan. Railways finished fourth in the Elite Group C last season with two wins and three losses in five games.
Meanwhile, Services finished third in the Elite Group with two wins and three losses in their respective five matches.
Both teams will be hoping for better returns this season as they try to begin positively with a vital win. Both teams lost their first games yesterday. Railways lost to Services by 5 runs while Punjab lost to Rajasthan by 6 wickets. They both will be seeking to redeem their name after an embarrassing first game yesterday. Expect a tight fit game in this round as both teams are determined and both have a strong team on their side.
PUNJAB VS RAILWAYS MATCH DETAILS:
Match: Punjab vs Railways, Vijay Hazare Trophy
Date: December 9, 2021
Time: 8:30 AM IST
Venue: JSCA Oval Ground, Ranchi
PUNJAB VS RAILWAYS PITCH REPORT
The wicket is ideal for batting and should provide an even contest. Bowlers will get assistance by bowling the right lines and lengths. However, bowling second will not be easy on this surface.
The team batting first will have to ensure they bat well and score enough runs. So the team winning the toss should look to bowl first.
PUNJAB VS RAILWAYS WEATHER REPORT
There could be partial cloud cover during the game. However, there is no rain predicted. The temperatures could hover between 17 and 23 degrees Celsius. A full contest without interruptions will likely ensue.
PUNJAB VS RAILWAYS PROBABLE XIS
PUNJAB
- Prabhsimran Singh
- Abhishek Sharma
- Mandeep Singh
- Gurkeerat Singh Mann
- Anmolpreet Singh
- Ramandeep Singh
- Harpreet Brar
- Arshdeep Singh
- Ashwani Kumar
- Mayank Markande
- Siddarth Kaul.
- Karn Sharma(c)
- Amit Mishra
- Mrunal Devdhar
- Akshat Pandey
- Pratham Singh
- Vivek Singh(w)
- Mohammad Saif
- Harsh Tyagi
- Shubham Chaubey
- Shivam Chaudhary
- Dhrushant Soni.
