Rohtak, Jan 12: Rajasthan have stormed into the final of the 2011-12 Ranji Trophy edition after beating Haryana by 64 runs on Day 3 of the semifinal encounter between the two sides. Defending a target of 185 in the fourth innings, Rajasthan bowled Haryana out for 120 run with one a day remaining in the match. Rajasthan’s win is commendable considering the fact they had been bowled out for a mere 89 runs in their first innings on Day 1.

With the hosts resuming the day at 15 for the loss of two wickets, needing another 170 runs to book a place in the final, early wickets by Rajasthan thwarted Haryana’s plans. Rituraj Singh struck in just the third over of the morning to remove nightwatchman Harshal Patel (1) and followed that up with the wicket of Prateek Pawar (6) six overs later.

From 36 for four, Haryana crumbled to 88 for seven as pacer Pankaj Singh accounted for opener Nitin Saini (23) and Sachin Rana (25) with fellow medium pacer Sumit Mathur removing Priyank Tehlan (9) between Singh’s two dismissals. The hosts went in to lunch with the score reading 95 for the loss of seven wickets.

The end came soon with the hosts losing their last three wickets after lunch for the addition of a mere 25 runs. Pankaj Singh claimed opposition captain Amit Mishra (10) to finish with a four-wicket haul while Rituraj Singh grabbed the remaining two wickets to finish with five for 37. Rituraj’s match figures stood at an impressive 12 for 82.

The Ranji Trophy Elite division final will be played between January 19 and 23, 2012. Rajasthan are the defending Ranji champions having beaten Baroda in last year’s final. They now await the winner of the Mumbai versus Tamil Nadu semifinal which is currently being played in Mumbai.

Scorecard

Man-of-the-Match: Rajasthan’s Rituraj Singh for impressive figures of 12 for 82