Baby resistance in vain as Vidarbha takes vital lead in Ranji Trophy final

Sachin Baby has 28 first-class fifties to his name. On Friday, he inadvertently added one more to that list, falling two runs short of what could have been his 15th hundred and possibly Kerala's pièce de résistance in their maiden Ranji Trophy final.

- HTC & Agencies

NAGPUR:

Once Vidarbha broke his 234-ball vigil, Kerala quickly lost the three remaining wickets to concede a 37-run lead at stumps on Day 3.

For Vidarbha, slow left-arm bowler Harsh Dubey took 3/88, breaking the record for most wickets by any bowler in the tournament's history. With 69 wickets so far this season, he has surpassed the record of 68 wickets by Bihar's Ashutosh Aman in 2018-19.

Apart from Baby's 98, Aditya Sarwate fought hard for his 185-ball 79 but Vidarbha held their nerve to gain a vital lead after dismissing the visitors for 342. Vidarbha had made 379 batting first.

Sarwate fell in the first session while batting mainstays, Salman Nizar (21) and Mohammed Azharuddeen (34), could not convert their good starts into big scores as Dubey, Darshan Nalkande (3/52) and Parth Rekhade (3/65) returned three-wicket hauls each.