NEW DELHI: Wasim Jaffer's double century left Delhi attack in a shambles at the Ferozeshah Kotla here on Wednesday as Mumbai, electing to bat, launched the season on a highly positive note with an opening day score of 329 for two in the Ranji Trophy elite group championship match.

With his fourth century against Delhi in as many meetings, Jaffer, who has so far added 306 runs in a rousing partnership with Amol Muzumdar, reiterated his credentials of being one of the most prolific and gifted opening batsmen in domestic cricket for nearly a decade.

"There was nothing in the pitch," lamented Delhi skipper Amit Bhandari as his bowlers toiled the entire day after left-arm seamer Kuunal Lall made two encouraging dents by removing Vinayak Mane and Vineet Indulkar. The Delhi attack, with the exception of Lall, looked woefully inadequate to tame Jaffer's attacking instincts on a pitch that became increasingly docile.

Flawless essay

Jaffer, who hit an unbeaten 314 against Saurashtra in only his second first-class match, was flawless in his shot selection and unflinching in temperament. He soundly saw off the initial threat when the ball seamed around in the first hour and then settled down to produce a compact effort that saw him face 270 balls. His 28 fours and three sixes indicated his excellent touch even as Delhi ran out of wits in the last two session when runs came in a cascade.

No less significant

Muzumdar's contribution was no less significant as he blunted the bowling with a 231-ball knock that contained six fours. Muzumdar was let off once by Lall at square-leg off Bhandari and survived a run out when wicketkeeper Varun Kumar failed to flick the bails. Umpire Subroto Porel, unsighted, gave Muzumdar out but changed his decision when the batsman pointed out the bails were undisturbed.

"It's always nice to hit a double century," said Jaffer, who built his innings with immense confidence drawn from playing a wide range of strokes. Having failed to consolidate good starts last season, the lanky opener scored at will, playing the sweep with the same intensity as the late cut. Jaffer's was an impeccable demonstration of positive batting, pushing Delhi on the back-foot from day one.

The scores:

Mumbai — 1st innings: Vinayak Mane c Chawla b Kuunal 7, Wasim Jaffer (batting) 206, Vineet Indulkar c Varun b Kuunal 4, Amol Muzumdar (batting) 93, Extras (b-4, lb-4, nb-11) 19, Total (for two wkts. in 85 overs) 329.

Fall of wickets: 1-11, 2-23.

Delhi bowling: Amit Bhandari 14-1-65-0, Kuunal Lall 12-3-37-2, Chetnya Nanda 25-6-67-0, Sarandeep Singh 22-1-94-0, Abhinav Bali 7-1-44-0, Rajat Bhatia 5-1-14-0.

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