Mumbai on the verge of victory over Chhattisgarh

MUMBAI: They dished out yet another pathetic show with the bat, but Mumbai are now just 14 runs away from a face-saving win that should at least give them some solace before they sign off from the Ranji Trophy this season.Starting Day Two at 118 for three in their last league match against Chhattisgarh at the Wankhede Stadium, the ousted domestic giants seemed to be have frittered away the advantage their seamers had handed them when they lost seven wickets for just 70 runs to be bowled out for 188, 23 minutes before lunch.However, for the second time in the match, Mumbai's premier fast bowlers, Shardul Thakur (4-47) and Tushar Deshpande (4-53) stood up to be counted, taking eight wickets between them to seal the game in Mumbai's favour. On a green top, Chhatisgarh surrendered meekly to Thakur (match haul of eight for 79) and Deshpande's (nine for 99) seam and swing.Hardly had Chattisgarh begun celebrations for bowling out Mumbai cheaply, they were reduced to 35 for four, with Thakur, who had taken three wickets by then, firing on all cylinders.They staged a minor comeback when Vishal Singh launched a counter-attack through his whirlwind 22-ball 47, hitting Deshpande for three fours and a couple of sixes.Vishal's entertaining 43-ball 61-run fifth wicket stand with Amandeep Khare (33, 67b) ended when he was adjudged caught behind down the legside off behind off a Shivam Dube delivery.Thereafter, Ajay Mandal came up with a few glorious cover drives, but Auti snapped him up brilliantly at gully off Deshpande when the batsman was on 24. Eventually, Chhatisgarh were bowled out for 149 in just 32.5 overs. They lasted just 74.5 overs in the match. They are just three seasons old at the moment, but clearly this team needs to improve a fair bit with the bat if it hopes to compete with top sides in domestic cricket. They have been found technically wanting on a seaming track.It left Mumbai with just 91to get in their final innings and there was a possibility that they could have wrapped up this game in two days had they batted faster. The hosts chose to bat for an extra 30 minutes too, but Jay Bista (36 not out, 62b, 4x4) and Vikrant Auti (32 not out, 70b, 5x4) didn't show much urgency, putting together 77 before close. Perhaps, the idea was to finish the season with an emphatic win with a bonus point to boot, rather than race to the target. Mumbai now just need a few more minutes of work on Wednesday morning. The autopsy of a failed season can then begin.Earlier, Chhatisgarh's bowlers did a commendable job to bring their team back into the contest. They weren't as quick as their Mumbai counterparts, but led by Pankaj Rao (3-53), all their medium-pacers bowled a nagging line, forcing the batsmen to play all the time.