A conservative, unbeaten half-century from captain Sachin Baby (69 batting, 193, 8×4) helped Kerala post 206 for four against Gujarat during day one of the first Ranji Trophy semifinal at the Narendra Modi Stadium here on Monday.
The opening day was a battle of patience as either side refused to give the opposition an inch to work with. Despite picking only four wickets in the day, the Gujarat bowlers will be buoyant with the controlled run rate while Kerala will take positives from the stubborn batting it employed against the host.
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Kerala got off to a solid start after opting to bat first on the black soil surface as openers Akshay Chandran and Rohan Kunnummal safely waded through the initial hour of play. There wasn’t much movement on offer for the pacers, in the air or off the surface, allowing the visiting batters to get their feet in.
Kunnummal survived an early lbw shout against Gujarat captain Chintan Gaja, with ball tracking suggesting that the delivery would have gone down leg upon review. The batters managed to eke out a few boundaries off overpitched balls to keep the scoreboard moving.
Despite a few disjointed calls while running between the wickets, the dugout spurred the batters on with orchestrated claps as the pair put on a fifty-run opening partnership in the 18th over.
The coordination issues while running between the wickets eventually proved fatal as Kunnummal sold Akshay down the river, asking for a risky single to extra cover. There was a slice of luck for the home team as the fielder’s misdirected throw deflected off wicketkeeper Urvil Patel’s gloves and hit the stumps.
Kunnummal perished a few overs later, unable to put the run-out episode behind him, trapped in front by a Ravi Bishnoi googly. Skipper Sachin and debutant Varun Nayanar stitched a 93-ball stand, but with the scoreboard not progressing, Gujarat managed to exert some pressure and prise out the young Nayanar for 10.
Gujarat bowler Ravi Bishnoi celebrates the wicket of Kerala batter Rohan Kunnummal.
| Photo Credit:
RV MOORTHY/The Hindu
Gujarat bowler Ravi Bishnoi celebrates the wicket of Kerala batter Rohan Kunnummal.
| Photo Credit:
RV MOORTHY/The Hindu
The game of attrition continued after Jalaj Saxena walked to the crease, and despite the duo managing to find boundaries consistently, Kerala could not manage an uptick in its run rate.
Gujarat waited 44 overs before bringing on its leading wicket-taker in the tournament, Siddharth Desai, and the left-arm spinner proved rather ineffective during his 16-over spell.
Left-arm pacer Arzan Nagwaswalla accounted for Jalaj after the tea break, forcing him to play on after a 71-run association with Sachin off 168 balls.
The stonewalling continued after the fall of the wicket as Mohammed Azharuddeen and Sachin held fort till the end of day’s play, forging a 49-run stand in 21 overs.