Vijay Hazare Trophy 2021, Punjab vs Railways: Probable XIs, Match prediction, Weather Forecast and Pitch Report

Punjab and Railways will face each other in the Vijay Hazare Trophy on Thursday, December 9, at the JSCA Oval Ground in Ranchi. Despite having some quality players in their ranks, Punjab failed to cross the line against Rajasthan in their opening fixture.

Punjab were bowled out for just 219 runs, after batting first. Their openers, Prabsimran Singh and Abhishek Sharma got starts, but failed to convert them into big scores. The same was the case with Mandeep Singh, Ramandeep Singh and Harpreet Brar. Gurkeerat Mann was the only significant scorer, scoring 67 runs.

Mayank Markande picked up a couple of wickets while Arshdeep Singh and Harpreet Brar grabbed a wicket apiece. However, Rajasthan won the match with an over and six wickets to spare.

Meanwhile, Railways lost their game against Services by five runs. Batting first, Services scored 254-8. Amit Mishra, Dhrushant Soni, Karn Sharma and Harsh Tyagi picked up two wickets apiece.

Railways almost chased the target, coming agonisingly close, ending with 249-9. Shivam Choudhary (49), Akshat Pandey (44*) and Mrunal Devdhar (30) were their primary run-getters.

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Punjab vs Railways Match Details

Match: Punjab vs Railways, Vijay Hazare Trophy.

Date: December 9, 2021.

Time: 8:30 AM IST.

Venue: JSCA Oval Ground, Ranchi.

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Punjab vs Railways Pitch Report

The wicket is ideal for batting, and should provide an even contest. Bowlers will get assistance by bowling the right lines and lengths. However, bowling second will not be easy on this surface.

The team batting first will have to ensure they bat well and score enough runs. So the team winning the toss should look to bowl first.

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Punjab vs Railways Weather Report

There could be partial cloud cover during the game. However, there is no rain predicted. The temperatures could hover between 17 and 23 degrees Celsius. A full contest without interruptions will likely ensue.

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Punjab vs Railways Probable XIs

Punjab

Prabhsimran Singh, Abhishek Sharma, Mandeep Singh, Gurkeerat Singh Mann, Anmolpreet Singh, Ramandeep Singh, Harpreet Brar, Arshdeep Singh, Ashwani Kumar, Mayank Markande, Siddarth Kaul.

Railways

Karn Sharma(c), Amit Mishra, Mrunal Devdhar, Akshat Pandey, Pratham Singh, Vivek Singh(w), Mohammad Saif, Harsh Tyagi, Shubham Chaubey, Shivam Chaudhary, Dhrushant Soni.

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Punjab vs Railways Match Prediction

Both teams have talented and well-known players in their ranks. Punjab faltered with their batting in their last game, and will have to put up a better show.

Railways were the better of the two sides in their first games. They lost a close game, but will take confidence from their performance. It should be an even, contest with both teams looking to register their first win of the tournament.

Prediction: Punjab to win this game.