CHENNAI: After conceding a 19-run lead, Tamil Nadu fought back strongly through skipper Sai Kishore’s four-wicket haul, reducing Railways to 107/9 on the second day of the Ranji Trophy Group D encounter at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Tuesday.
With the pitch assisting spinners, the Tamil Nadu skipper took the new ball alongside Gurjapneet Singh. It was the left-arm pacer who picked up the first wicket, sending Railways’ opener Vivek Singh’s off-stump cartwheeling.
Sahab Singh and Mohammad Saif added 16 runs for second-wicket before Sai struck to send the latter packing through a contentious LBW call, as the ball might have gone over the stumps. Three deliveries later, the left-arm spinner struck again to send Railways’ skipper Bhargav Merai packing for a three-ball duck.
Ravi Singh (19 off 18) showed his white-ball prowess with two fours before Hemchudeshan got him caught at slip. Ajith Ram removed Railways’ first-innings hero, Zubair Ali to bring up his 100th first-class wicket. Toufik Mondal hit two boundaries before Hemchudeshan trapped him right in front.
Raj Choudhary hung on for 20 deliveries before getting a duck on his 21st ball at the crease, as Railways were reduced to 89/8 before ending the day on 107/9, courtesy of Sahab Yuvraj Singh’s patient 42. Despite the score, Choudhary was confident that Railways can pull off the win.
“I think 120 is also a good score because the ball is turning quite a bit, so we are confident that we will get them [Tamil Nadu] bowled out. We need a few quick wickets up front with the ball,” Choudhary told reporters after the day’s play.
Earlier, resuming on 71/3, left-arm spinner Choudhary ran riot, picking up three wickets in the span of 12 deliveries, leaving the hosts stunned. The left-arm spinner trapped a hesitant Andre Siddarth (8) in front before a sharp turning delivery left SR Athish bamboozled (0 off 1) as TN were reduced to 71/5. It soon turned to 75/6, when Sonu Yadav was caught by the short leg fielder.
“My discussion with the coach was simply to keep the ball on the stumps because one ball was turning and the next was going straight. So the plan was to target the stumps; whatever happens off the wicket will happen,” Choudhary, a big Ravindra Jadeja fan, said.
But the lower-order resisted Railways’ bowlers, and provided Baba Indrajith (59) with timely support. Skipper Sai added 14 runs before Aijth struck a six during his handy seven. Hemchudeshan was the pick of the batters lower down the order as the off-spinner scored 26, playing a crucial role in the 50-run partnership with Indrajith.
Brief Scores: Railways 184 in 53.3 overs & 107/9 in 51 overs (Yuvraj 42; Sai 4/38, Hemchudeshan 3/21) leads Tamil Nadu 165 all-out in 63.1 overs (Indrajith 59, Jagadeesan 30; Raj 5/41) by 126 runs after day two