Railways aim for an outright win vs Services

New Delhi: Having conceded a 46-run first innings lead against minnows Services, the Railways batsmen gave a better account of themselves with vice-captain Mahesh Rawat leading the charge with an impressive unbeaten 67 as Railways extended their overall lead to 178 runs.

Having dismissed Services for 153, Railways erased the deficit of 46 runs to reach 130 for six before Rawat and Ashish Yadav (32) added 94 runs for the unbroken seventh wicket stand. Rawat has hit seven fours and a six in his 104-ball innings. Earlier, Railways got a good start with openers Shivakant Shukla and veteran India discard Murali Kartik putting on 75 runs. Kartik, who has done precious little in the matches so far, made his first significant contribution scoring 35 off 65 balls with two fours and a six. At the start of the day, Anureet Singh (4/44) and Ranjit Mali (2/44) removed the remaining two wickets to keep the lead down to 46 runs. Brief Scores: Railways 107 & 224/6 (Mahesh Rawat 67 batting, Ashish Yadav 32 batting, Murali Kartik 35) Services 153 (Yashpal Singh 67, Anureet Singh 4/44).