Opening batter Madhav Kaushik’s unbeaten 128 handed Uttar Pradesh an upper hand against Punjab as they reached 293 for 3 on Day 2 of their Ranji Trophy Group C match here on Sunday.

UP resumed the day at 8/0 after the hosts made 210 in their first innings, and they are ahead by 83 runs at stumps with seven wickets in hand.

After 34 runs were added in the day, Punjab got the breakthrough as UP skipper Aryan Juyal (16) fell to Gurnoor Brar.

The Kaushik and Priyam Garg (27) pair added 43 more to the UP total before the latter became Brar’s second victim.

As the score read 85/2, Kaushik was joined by India international Nitish Rana (66), with the two stitching a partnership of 120 runs for the third wicket.

While Kaushik struck his second First-Class ton during this stand, Rana brought up his 13th fifty in the format.

Eventually, Mayank Markande was the one to break the alliance, trapping Rana leg-before.

Although UP were trailing behind by five runs then, the Kaushik-Rinku Singh (46 not out off 85 balls) duo has so far shared a 88-run stand for the unconquered fourth wicket to keep UP in a comfortable position.

Kaushik has so far hit 17 fours during his 231-ball unbeaten innings. On Saturday, Punjab were bowled out for 210, courtesy of Shivam Mavi’s four-wicket haul, while Pukhraj Mann (61) and Sanvir Singh (50) were the top scorers for the hosts.

Brief scores: In Mullanpur: Punjab 210 (Pukhraj Mann 61, Sanvir Singh 50; Shivam Mavi 4/29) trails Uttar Pradesh 293/3 (Madhav Kaushik 128 batting, Nitish Rana 66, Rinku Singh 46 batting; Gurnoor Brar 2/66) by 83 runs.

In Patna: Bihar 143 (Sharman Nigrodh 60; Shreyas Gopal 4/28) leads Karnataka 16/0 (Nikin Jose 11 batting) by 127 runs. No play on Day 2 due to rain.

In Kolkata: Kerala 51/4 (Rohan Kunnummal 23; Ishan Porel 3/18) vs Bengal.

In Indore: Madhya Pradesh 308 (Himanshu Mantri 97, Jayant Yadav 5/84) leads Haryana 185/3 (Lakshay Dalal 60 batting, Himanshu Rana 90; Avesh Khan 2/25) by 123 runs.