Centuries by Rajat Patidar and Harpreet Singh in the second innings and Ishwar Pandey's match-haul of eight wickets helped Madhya Pradesh seal a spot in 2015-16 Ranji Trophy semi-final with a colossal 355-run win over Bengal
Rajat Patidar's third century in only his fifth match was the centerpiece of Madhya Pradesh's batathon that has all but shunted Bengal out of the quarterfinal, as they piled up a 565-run lead by the end of day three
Madhya Pradesh's pace pack shredded Bengal's batting order and secured a 227-run lead in the first innings to sway the match almost decisively in their direction
Madhya Pradesh's batsmen harvested the benefits of a patient approach in the morning and some inconsistent bowling to close out the day as the happier team after Bengal had invited them to bat
Despite scoring three centuries in his first five Ranji Trophy matches, Rajat Patidar feels his first season for Madhya Pradesh has been an average one
Rookie fast bowlers Puneet Datey and Chandrakant Sakure have caught a few eyes, including that of former India allrounder Robin Singh, while playing for Madhya Pradesh in the Ranji Trophy quarter-final
Opening batsman, offspinner and yoga expert, Jalaj Saxena reveals the intensely driven cricketer behind the self-effacing facade
Bengal conceded the lead only once during the group stages, and will hope they can carry that form into their quarter-final against Madhya Pradesh at the Brabourne Stadium
| Group A | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | M | W | L | D | PT | NRR |
| VIDAR | 8 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 29 | 0.047 |
| BENG | 8 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 28 | 0.11 |
| ASSAM | 8 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 26 | -0.304 |
| DELHI | 8 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 25 | 0.215 |
| KNTKA | 8 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 24 | 0.336 |
| RAJ | 8 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 17 | -0.313 |
| MAHA | 8 | 1 | 2 | 5 | 17 | 0.301 |
| ODSA | 8 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 12 | 0.016 |
| HRYNA | 8 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 6 | -0.406 |
| Group B | ||||||
| Team | M | W | L | D | PT | NRR |
| MUM | 8 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 35 | 0.851 |
| PNJB | 8 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 26 | 0.045 |
| MP | 8 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 24 | -0.059 |
| GUJ | 8 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 24 | -0.092 |
| UP | 8 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 21 | -0.117 |
| TN | 8 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 18 | -0.322 |
| BRODA | 8 | 2 | 3 | 3 | 17 | -0.045 |
| RLYS | 8 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 12 | 0.039 |
| AP | 8 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 10 | -0.459 |
| Group C | ||||||
| Team | M | W | L | D | PT | NRR |
| SAU | 8 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 36 | -0.061 |
| JHK | 8 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 31 | 0.088 |
| HP | 8 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 30 | 1.013 |
| SVCS | 8 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 27 | 0.472 |
| KER | 8 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 25 | 0.084 |
| GOA | 8 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 18 | -0.21 |
| J + K | 8 | 0 | 3 | 5 | 9 | -0.053 |
| HYD | 8 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 8 | -0.467 |
| TPURA | 8 | 0 | 5 | 3 | 3 | -0.76 |
