Finally, we got to see the Ajinkya Rahane we know. After amassing over 2,000 runs in just two seasons, the Mumbai opener looked a shadow of himself this time around.
However, on Wednesday, the nimble-footed right-hander broke the shell with a patient, unbeaten 89 (185 balls, 10x4) to give his side the upper hand on Day Two of the Ranji Trophy Super League Group A tie against the hosts Hyderabad.
Giving him jocund company was Sahil Kukreja, who remained unbeaten with an equally impressive 87 (188 balls, 5x4, 2x6) when stumps were drawn at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Uppal, near Hyderabad. The duo stitched together a crucial, undefeated 171-run stand for the second wicket after wicketkeeper Vinayak Samant (13) was caught behind by Ibrahim Khaleel off medium-pacer MP Arjun on 27.
Rahane and Kukreja mixed caution with aggression as they handled both pace and spin with ease. The duo scored 72 runs off boundaries and the defending champions are just 68 runs short of Hyderabad’s first innings total of 266. This knock will do a world of good for Rahane in particular given that he has managed to register scores of 44 in the Irani Trophy and only 6, 3, 50, 2 and 37 in three Ranji Trophy fixtures till date.
Resuming the day at 223-7, the hosts managed to frustrate Mumbai for a while before two quick run-outs — that of Ashwin Yadav and Shoaib Ahmed — did them in.
Mumbai coach Pravin Amre was happy with the team’s intensity. “We kept the intensity in the first session and executed the run- outs at a crucial juncture. Now with Ajinkya and Sahil batting well, I believe the job is half done. The idea is to bat for as long as we can on Thursday and then hope to bowl them out on Day 4. We have a good spin attack (the experienced Ramesh Powar and the street-smart Iqbal Abdulla) and they are capable of doing the job,” Amre signed off.
SCORECARD
Hyderabad 1st innings (overnight 223/7): A Quadri not out 76, MP Arjun b Kulkarni 13, A Yadav run out (Abdulla) 10, S Ahmed run out (Jaffer/Samant) 0; Extras: (B 7, LB 2, W 1, NB 10) 20; Total: (all out; 110.2 overs) 266 (2.41 runs per over); FoW: 8-235, 9-265; Bowling: Agarkar 25-6-44-3 (W 1), Kulkarni 18-7-52-1 (NB 2), Salvi 16.2-3-40-2, Powar 20-2-58-1 (NB 8), Nayar 14-3-28-1, Abdulla 17-6-35-0
Mumbai 1st innings: V Samant c Khaleel b Arjun 13, S Kukreja batting 87, A Rahane batting 89; Extras: (B 4, LB 2, NB 3) 9; Total: (1 wicket; 67 overs) 198 (2.95 runs per over); FoW: 1-27; Bowling: Arjun 17-4-49-1 (NB 1), Ahmed 14-1-36-0, Yadav 16-2-49-0 (NB 2), Shinde 17-3-45-0, Quadri 3-0-13-0
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