Nagpur | Hosts Vidarbha extended their lead to 127 runs as they reached 90 for 2 in their second innings at lunch on day four against Kerala in the Ranji Trophy final here on Saturday.

Beginning their second essay, Vidarbha, who had taken a crucial 37-run first-innings lead, lost both their openers in the first half-an-hour of the day before Danish Malewar (38 batting) and in-form Karun Nair (42 batting) steadied the ship with an 83-run unbeaten partnership.

Veteran spinner Jalaj Saxena (1/36) struck off his very first ball of the day to remove Parth Rekhade (1), providing the first breakthrough to Kerala.

Medium pacer MD Nidheesh (1/17) , who has been Kerala's leading bowler this season, then removed Dhruv Shorey (5) in the next over.

First-time finalists Kerala, who conceded a first-innings lead, desperately need wickets to have a shot at winning their maiden Ranji Trophy title.

Brief scores:

Vidarbha: 379 and 90/2 in 34 overs (Karun Nair 42 batting, Danish Malewar 38 batting; MD Nidheesh 1/17, Jalaj Saxena 1/36).

Kerala: 1st innings 342 in 125 overs (Sachin Baby 98, Aditya Sarwate 79; Darshan Nalkande 3/52, Harsh Dubey 3/88, Parth Rekhade 3/65).