Ricky Bhui hit an unbeaten 109 to help Andhra score 277 for 3 on the opening day of their Ranji Trophy Elite Group E match against Services in Thiruvananthapuram on Thursday.
Electing to bat, Andhra got off to a horror start, losing opener CR Gnaneshwar for a duck to Diwesh Pathania.
Wicketkeeper-batter UMS Girinath (53) and SK Rasheed (23) put on 49 runs for the second wicket before the latter fell to PS Poonia.
Bhui joined Girinath in the middle and put on 70 runs for the third wicket in a little over 20 overs.
Poonia struck a second time to get rid of Girinath, who had shown a lot of resolve.
Bhui and Karan Shinde (71 batting, 187 balls) got together for the fourth wicket and denied Services any further breakthroughs.
The right-handed batter Bhui was the more aggressive of the two and did not waste any opportunity to put away the bad deliveries. He has so far hit eight fours and one six from 187 balls.
Shinde was more watchful and played a high percentage of dot balls. However, he made sure that he did not give any chances to the opposition bowlers.
The Bhui-Shinde stand made sure that Andhra ended the day at a strong 277 for 3.
In the other match of the day, Uttarakhand finished day one against Rajasthan at 228 for 5, thanks to half centuries by Kunal Chandela (89) and Swapnil Singh (69 batting).
Uttarakhand and Rajasthan had won their opening matches in the group on Sunday last.
Brief Scores
Andhra: 277 for 3 in 90 overs (Ricky Bhui 109 batting, Karan Shinde 71 batting, UMS Girinath 54) vs Services.
Uttarakhand: 228 for 5 in 90 overs (Kunal Chandela 89, Swapnil Singh 69 batting; AV Choudhary 3 for 35, Kamlesh Nagarkoti 2 for 26) vs Rajasthan.
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