Shardul Thakur’s explosive 109 and Tanush Kotian’s unbeaten 74 made up for R Sai Kishore’s six-wicket haul as Tamil Nadu posted a 207-run first innings lead on the second day of the Ranji Trophy semi-final in Mumbai on Sunday. Mumbai took the lead.
With the help of a brilliant first-class century from all-rounder Shardul Thakur (109) and an unbeaten 74 runs from Tanush Kotian, Mumbai took a strong lead of 207 runs in the first innings over Tamil Nadu on the second day of the Ranji Trophy semi-final on Sunday despite R Sai Kishore. Impressive six wicket haul.
Thakur’s aggressive century, which included 13 fours and four sixes in just 104 balls, rescued Mumbai from a delicate situation of 106 for seven.
By the end of the day’s play, Mumbai had scored 353 runs for 9 wickets in reply to Tamil Nadu’s 146 runs in the first innings, with Sai Kishore being the most effective bowler for Tamil Nadu.
Sai Kishore (6/97) shattered a large part of Mumbai’s batting line-up, while Shreyas Iyer (3) fell to fast bowler Sandeep Warrier, helping Tamil Nadu draw level with the hosts for the first time in the game. Went.
But Thakur launched a brilliant attack and put every Tamil Nadu bowler under severe pressure, while also forming important partnerships to take Mumbai very far in the game.
Thakur along with Hardik Tamore (35) made an important partnership of 105 runs for the eighth wicket and along with Kotian added 79 runs for the ninth wicket to take Mumbai forward.
Using his blade to perfection, Thakur was adept with his hands to slot into the gaps at will and never missed a chance clearing the field a maximum of four times – one of which also brought up his maiden century in all formats.
Thakur, who was also battling an ankle problem along the way, eventually lost to Kuldeep Sen (2/65) in the third session, which brought the pair of Kotian and Tushar Deshpande back together after their heroics in the previous match. Gave.
After a 232-run stand for the 10th wicket in the previous match, Kotian and Deshpande picked up where they left off and stitched an unbeaten 63-run stand for the 10th wicket.
With Deshpande (17 not out) joining his innings very late, Kotian excelled in the innings like an expert batsman, scoring 74 not out off 109 balls with 10 fours.
Had their tail-enders, who also shone in the quarterfinals, not had another rearguard, Mumbai would not have finished the day with a huge lead as most of their key batsmen cut disappointing figures.
On a cloudy morning here at the BKC ground and wind blowing across the ground, Sai Kishore’s decision to open the bowling in conditions favorable to fast bowlers raised a few eyebrows.
But the Tamil Nadu captain and leading wicket-taker in this Ranji Trophy justified his move by putting constant pressure on the Mumbai batsmen, scoring an impressive 17-6-28-4 in the first session and breaking only after playing 22 overs. took. at a stretch.
After nightwatchman Mohit Awasthi (2) was stumped, Sai Kishore ended his counterpart Ajinkya Rahane’s 67-ball innings by being caught at first slip for just 19 runs (2×4).
Rahane moved forward confidently to defend on the front foot but then the ball kissed the outside edge and was caught by Baba Inderjeet at first slip.
Mumbai’s troubles increased further when Iyer, troubled by the lack of runs and the loss of the central contract, was dismissed for just three runs by Tamil Nadu fast bowler Warrier.
But Musheer (55 runs off 131 balls, 6×4 seconds) continued to take big steps from the other end, taking on the responsibility of scoring runs for his team. The 18-year-old did not respond even when the Tamil Nadu fielders, both in front and behind him, tried to harass him.
However, a lapse in concentration led to Musheer’s innings ending prematurely when his backfoot got caught ‘on line’ at the crease due to a sharp removal of the bails by N Jagadeesan.
Brief scores: Tamil Nadu 146, trailing Mumbai 353/9 in 100 overs (Mushir Khan 55, Shardul Thakur 109, Tanush Kotian 74*; R Sai Kishore 6/97) by 207 runs.
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