Ranji Trophy Quarterfinals | Gharami’s spectacular innings ends at 299, Bengal all but through to the semifinals

In an excellent exhibition of temperament, skill and fitness, Sudip Gharami played the knock of his life to drive Bengal closer to a Ranji Trophy semifinal berth even while suffering the heartbreak of missing a triple hundred by a whisker

The 26-year-old’s monumental effort (299, 596b, 31×4, 6×6), lasting 15-and-a-half hours over three days, earned Bengal a decisive lead over Andhra on the fourth day of the quarterfinal match at the Bengal Cricket Academy ground here on Monday.

The host, resuming at 418 for six, posted a gigantic 629 to secure a 334-run lead and virtually eliminate Andhra, which tottered at 64 for three at stumps.

Gharami retained his focus and prospered with his overnight partner Shakir Habib Gandhi. Beginning from 216, Gharami played deliveries on merit while switching between caution and aggression. He executed some glorious shots on the carpet and danced down the track beautifully against the spinners to hit six sweetly timed sixes.

Gandhi (95, 229b, 8×4, 1×6), starting from 45, gathered five runs in the first 70 minutes before showcasing well-timed cuts and drives. He benefitted from a ‘life’ but missed a century, getting trapped in front by part-time leg-spinner Shaik Rasheed in the middle session. His superb 221-run partnership with Gharami was the game-changer.

Gharami, dropped on 251, continued until a Rasheed delivery moved in straight. He was the third batter after Martin Crowe (1991, New Zealand vs Sri Lanka) and Mike Powell (2006, Glamorgan vs Gloucestershire) to be dismissed on 299 in a First Class match.

”I played the role assigned to me. I’ve left the disappointment behind and look forward to the semifinals (against Jammu and Kashmir),” said Gharami.

Mohammed Shami (53, 33b, 7×4, 3×4) delighted with his fireworks and helped Bengal pile on the misery. Rasheed scalped four wickets amid Andhra’s toil.

The scores: Andhra – 1st innings: 295.

Bengal – 1st innings: Abhimanyu Easwaran c Rasheed b Nitish 1, Sudip Chatterjee b Sasikanth 13, Sudip Gharami b Rasheed 299, Anustup Majumdar c (sub) Revanth b Sasikanth 9, Suraj Jaiswal b Vijay 20, Shahbaz Ahmed b Saurabh 5, Sumanta Gupta c Gnaneshwar b Saurabh 81, Shakir Habib Gandhi lbw b Rasheed 95, Akash Deep c Raju b Rasheed 12, Mohammed Shami c Vijay b Rasheed 53, Mukesh Kumar (not out) 6; Extras (b-16, lb-8, nb-6, w-5): 35; Total (in 199.1 overs): 629.

Fall of wickets: 1-9, 2-27, 3-43, 4-123, 5-153, 6-318, 7-539, 8-569, 9-574.

Andhra bowling: Nitish 25-4-65-1, Saiteja 24-4-66-0, Sasikanth 20-4-59-2, Raju 26-4-70-0, Saurabh 55-13-124-2, Vijay 36-3-155-1, Rasheed 12.1-1-63-4, Bhui 1-0-3-0.

Andhra – 2nd innings: C.R. Gnaneshwar b Jaiswal 20, Abhishek Reddy b Akash 5, Shaik Rasheed st. Gandhi b Shahbaz 8, Ricky Bhui (batting) 18, Nitish Reddy (batting) 1; Extras (b-4, lb-4, nb-3, w-1): 12; Total (for three wkts. in 24 overs): 64.

Fall of wickets: 1-16, 2-43, 3-45.

Bengal bowling: Mukesh 5-2-7-0, Akash 4-1-7-1, Jaiswal 7-0-24-1, Shami 3-1-7-0, Shahbaz 5-1-11-1.

Published – February 09, 2026 06:54 pm IST