Bhajji stars with bat

Vadodra: Punjab captain Harbhajan Singh made a superb return to competitive cricket as he smashed 92 off only 80 balls to rescue his team from a precarious position against an impressive Jammu and Kashmir bowling attack on the first day of the Ranji Trophy quarter-final in Vadodara on Wednesday.

Punjab finished with 304 in their first innings as Harbhajan and No 9 batsman Sandeep Sharma (51) added an invaluable 105 runs for the eighth wicket after J&K seam trio of Samiullah Beigh (2/56), Ram Dayal (3/59) and Umar Nazir (4/66) reduced them to 146 for seven. At stumps, J&K were 11 for one after opener Obaid Haroon (4) edged one from Sandeep to wicketkeeper Gitansh Khera.

Using the helpful conditions, J&K bowlers --- especially seamer Dayal, caused a lot of discomfort for Punjab's top-order batsmen including Yuvraj Singh (10) but the experienced Punjab team finally wriggled out of trouble. Coming back after a shoulder niggle that kept him out for more than six weeks, Harbhajan clobbered eight fours and six sixes in his 80-ball knock before he was out trying to slog sweep opposite number Parveez Rasool over short fine-leg.

Harbhajan got good support from Sandeep, who played the role of second fiddle to perfection by rotating the strike. Harbhajan scored 68 off his 92 runs in boundaries with 14 scoring strokes.