Skipper siddhesh lad

Sharad Pawar Cricket Academy: Skipper Siddhesh Lad struck his record-equalling fifth century of the ongoing Ranji Trophy season to help Mumbai take a first-innings lead against Delhi on day two of their Elite Group D match at the Sharad Pawar Cricket Academy ground on Friday.

Lad remained unbeaten on 102 off 178 balls, hitting 12 boundaries and becoming the first Mumbai batter in over three decades to notch five hundreds in a single Ranji Trophy season. His efforts, supported by Musheer Khan (57) and Suved Parkar (53 not out), helped Mumbai reach 266/5 in 84 overs at stumps, with a lead of 45 runs.

Delhi’s pacers bowled with discipline to keep Mumbai in check and reduce them to 44/3. Musheer steadied the innings before falling to debutant Rahul Chaudhary, while Sarfaraz Khan’s brief counter-attack ended with an edge behind. Parkar then joined Lad to rotate strike and punish loose deliveries. Lad then brought up his century in the final session and received applause from his teammates and sparse spectators.