The crunch match will determine the group's qualifiers to the knock-out round. Tamil Nadu, who scored an outright win in their last match against Orissa, are just one point ahead of their rivals who have garnered 15 points from first-inning leads in their last three outings.

Both captains reposed faith in strong batting. Maharasthra skipper Surendra Bhave enthused: ``We have a solid batting line-up. We don't want to take chances with new faces as we are recalling the experienced Hemant Kinikar.''Robin Singh Sr, leading Tamil Nadu, is confident of the depth of his batting. ``We can bat down to number 10,'' he said before leading his team to nets later in the evening.

The Poona, wicket with some grass on it has prompted the teams to line up seamers in their ranks.

Das to lead Orissa

CUTTACK:Sanjay Raul stood down from the cares of captaincy to concentrate on his own form as Orissa geared up for their last Group B four-day Ranji Trophy Super League clash with Delhi beginning at the Barabati Stadium tomorrow.

Orissa Cricket Association (OCA) sources said batsman Shiv Sundar Das would lead the team though all-rounder Raul, who played for the country in the Sahara Cup in Toronto last year, would play.

Delhi, who have 16 points from the three matches they have played so far, are viewing this engagement with all seriousness as its outcome would decide their future in the tournament.

The visitors need to ensure the first innings lead to go through to the knock-out round. But Orissa, who have so far earned eight points, are already out of the race and would be playing to salvage their pride.The other tie between Maharashtra (15 points) and Tamil Nadu (16 points) starting at Pune tomorrow would decide the other qualifier from the group.

Crunch tie for Hyderabad

VADODARA: The hosts havenothing to lose, but a lot of reputation to salvage, and Hyderabad have everything to gain in the Group-A Ranji Super League match that starts at the IPCL ground on Saturday.

Vadodara, with just six points, are out of the picture with no chance of qualifying for the knock-out, but they have to prove that they are not such a weak team as Punjab made them out to be in the last match. Hyderabad, with 16 points from three matches, are virtually through to the knock-outs but if they gain full points from this match, they could enter straight into the semi-finals.

Ganguly bolsters Bengal

CALCUTTA: Bengal would seek to capitalise on home advantage when they lock horns with Punjab in their last Group-A match at the Eden Gardens. The avaibility of Sourav Ganguly and young all-rounder Laxmi Ratan Shukla has lend solidity to Bengal which would be hoping for an outright victory to keep their hopes alive in the championship.

Bengal have 13 points from three matches while Punjab have 11 points from threeoutings.