Vadodara, Oct 11 (PTI) Mitesh Patel and Atit Sheth staged a spirited recovery for Baroda, taking them to 241 for six against defending champions Mumbai on day one of their Ranji Trophy opener here on Friday.
Mumbai pacers Shardul Thakur and Mohit Avasthi removed the Baroda openers before the seasoned spin duo of Shams Mulani and Tanush Kotian got into the act, reducing Baroda to 90 for five in the 35th over.
At that point Mumbai were all over the opposition before Mitesh (86 off 159) and Atit (batting 60) frustrated the Ajinkya Rahane led-side with a 130-run partnership.
Baroda skipper Krunal Pandya (21) was the fifth wicket to fall for Baroda at stroke of lunch. Off-spinner Kotian had Krunal had caught behind. The Baroda skipper had collected two sixes off Mulani before perishing.
Kotian had also got rid of Shashwat Rawat (25 off 65), who had impressed with a hundred in the Duleep Trophy.
Mitesh was caught by Ajinkya Rahane off Mulani just before the new ball was due. Mitesh went for a hard slash off the left-arm spinner and Rahane did well to take a sharp catch.
For day one, the surface offered plenty of turn and bounce.
Earlier, Shardul had castled Shivalik Sharma with a beauty while Avasthi sent back Jyotsnil Singh (10) after the home opted to bat.
Brief Scores: Baroda 1st innings: 241 for 6 in 87 overs (Mitesh Patel 86, Atit Sheth 60 batting; Shams Mulani 2/95, Tanush Kotian 2/53).
In other Group A matches: In Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir 1st innings: 264 for 5 in 80 overs against Maharashtra (Shubham Kathuria 130 batting, Shubham Pundir 37; Hitesh Walunj 2/66) In Delhi: Services 1st innings: 298 for 4 in 90 overs against Meghalaya (Ravi Chauhan 113, Rajat Paliwal 86 batting; Aryan Bora 2/77). PTI BS AT AT
