Rajkot: Ishwar Pandey led an impressive bowling effort by Madhya Pradesh as they left Saurashtra struggling at 212 for nine on the first day of their Group `A` Ranji Trophy match here on Saturday.
Pandey returned impressive figures of three for 37 while Ankeet Sharma and Rameez Khan took two wickets each after the visitors elected to bat at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium.
However, it was Anand Rajan who was the first one to strike for Madhya Pradesh, having Shintanshu Kotak trapped in front.
The hosts could not recover from the early blow and lost wickets at regular intervals.
Barring opener Sheldon Jackson (53) and Arpit Vasavada (54) and to some extent, Kamlesh makvana, who was batting on 41 at the draw of stums, none could make an impact for Saurashtra.
The day`s play ended with the wicket of Dharmendrasinh Jadeja.
Brief scores:
Saurashtra 1st innings: 212/9 in 90 overs (Arpit Vasavada 54, Sheldon Jackson 53; Ishwar Pandey 3/37).
PTI
First Published: Saturday, December 29, 2012, 18:16