The fringe and aspiring bunch will look to own the elevated Duleep Trophy stage as the red-ball competition returns to its traditional zonal format and marks the start of India's domestic cricket season.
While a few catches were put down by both teams, there were some that stuck.
Sudharsan and Rinku put on 55 runs for the fourth-wicket stand.
Gujarat Titans will be aiming for a top-two spot even as Chennai Super Kings continue planning for the future when the two teams meet in the Indian Premier League match in Ahmedabad on Sunday.
The Gujarat Titans and Rajasthan Royals will hope their struggling bowling units can find their form on an Ahmedabad pitch that has produced high scores in the last four matches.
Mumbai off to flourishing start in SMAT, beat Railways by 7 wickets
As many as 16 wickets fell on the opening day as visitors Hyderabad were left reeling at 88/6 after bundling out Jammu and Kashmir for 170 on the opening day of their Ranji Trophy Elite Group D match in Jammu on Sunday.
Gujarat Titans will aim to tighten their grip on the top spot and move closer to securing a play-off berth when they take on a faltering Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League match in Jaipur on Monday.
On paper, the squad may not create too much optimism among fans but it still has a balanced look with a good mix of young players and experienced international names.
Karun Nair and Ravichandran Smaran made double hundreds as Karnataka gained upper hand over Kerala on the second day of their Ranji Trophy Elite Group B match.
The Capitals sit pretty at the top with 10 points from six games, while the Titans trail close behind with eight from as many outings.
Gujarat Titans will look to bounce back from the carnage that wonder boy Vaibhav Suryavanshi inflicted on them when they face a stuttering Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL match in Ahmedabad on Friday.
Gujarat Titans eye top-two finish as struggling LSG look to salvage pride
Rinku Singh picked for second round as top stars leave for Test series against Bangladesh. Mayank Agarwal has been named as India A captain in Gill's place.
Jharkhand's batters dominated the Ranji Trophy pre-quarterfinal match against Nagaland to register the fourth-highest team total in the tournament's history at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Monday.
The Aditya Birla group has set aside 6.5 per cent stake in Bachhraj & Co, the company that controls 24.54 per cent of Bajaj Hindusthan, for Kushagra Bajaj's wife, Vasavadatta, sources close to the development said.
Riyan Parag and Shaswat Rawat struck fluent half-centuries to help India A tighten their grip over India C on the penultimate day of the four-day Duleep Trophy final round match in Anantapur on Saturday.
But in their pursuit of glory, both leaders must find a way to address the issues at hand.
Rajasthan's Mahipal Lomror put the IPL franchises on alert ahead of the mega auction with a sensational triple hundred comprising a staggering 13 sixes and 25 fours in their Ranji Trophy Group B match against Uttarakhand here on Thursday.
Former India skipper Sourav Ganguly said on Saturday that Rishabh Pant is "fully fit" but added that the wicketkeeper-batter should be given some more time to prepare himself for India team selection for the upcoming T20 World Cup in the West Indies and USA.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru's bowling unit will face a different challenge when they take on Gujarat Titans in an IPL match on Wednesday.
SMAT: Haryana beat Bengal to enter Super 8s, Punjab also qualify
Shaken by the abrupt suspension of their previous match due to the India-Pakistan conflict, a struggling Delhi Capitals will look to regroup and address bowling concerns when they face table-toppers Gujarat Titans in a reverse-leg IPL clash in Delhi on Sunday to keep their play-off hopes alive.
An in-form Mumbai Indians will be out for revenge having lost to Gujarat Titans earlier in the season.
It must be mentioned here that veteran bowler Ishant Sharma has already told DDCA that he won't play red-ball cricket anymore now that he is no longer in contention for a national comeback.
The likes of Shreyas Iyer, Sanju Samson, Riyan Parag and Rinku Singh will get another opportunity to enhance their red-ball credentials when the final round of Duleep Trophy matches begin in Anantapur
India fast bowler Mohammed Siraj was ruled out of the upcoming Duleep Trophy because of illness.
Having stuttered in the chase, Parag's yet another quickfire knock -- 95 from 65 balls with eight fours and five sixes -- revived East Zone's hopes of turning the tables on South Zone.
Shreyas Iyer and Shubman Gill, both in strong form after their Champions Trophy triumph with India, look to lead their respective teams, Punjab Kings and Gujarat Titans, to IPL glory in the 2025 season.
KKR spinner Varun Chakaravarthy said bowlers must learn to live with the IPL's Impact Player rule
Sunrisers Hyderabad, reeling from three consecutive defeats, will face a resurgent Gujarat Titans in their fifth IPL encounter on Sunday.
Suryakumar Yadav will miss the first round match after suffering a a sprain to his right thumb.
Pandya's inclusion obviously adds firepower to batting and he can also open the bowling if necessary.
Reigning champions Kolkata Knight Riders will hope that their strife-ridden batting unit will tighten its act against in-form table-toppers Gujarat Titans in the IPL match in Kolkata on Monday.
All-rounder Shams Mulani starred with the ball to spearhead India A's remarkable recovery against India D on Day 1 of the Duleep Trophy match.
The Gujarat Titans have cemented their status as a dominant force in the IPL. With a strategic blend of experience and youth, the team is poised to make another strong bid for the title in IPL 2025.
The victory took India A to the top of the points table with a total of 12 points from three matches, crowing them as the eventual winners.
With 288 runs at a strike rate of 225, Nicholas Pooran is the top run-getter in IPL 2025, while Mohammed Siraj has been brilliant in Powerplay overs with 10 wickets in five games.
In the absence of national regulars, the focus will shift on the likes of Rinku, who was surprisingly not picked for the first round despite having an impressive first-class record.
Rishabh Pant's fifty, Sarfaraz Khan's aggression give India B control on Day 3 of the Duleep Trophy in Bengaluru on Saturday
