Ranji Trophy: Sushant Marathe breaks free

Opening batsman Sushant Marathe has been around in Mumbai’s first class circuit for more than half a decade. He has failed in most of the opportunities he has got. Against Saurashtra recently, he got another chance, but he struggled there too, scoring zero and one in respective innings.

On Tuesday against Uttar Pradesh, he took the guard again. This time a failure would have meant the possibility of being dropped from the team. However, Marathe soaked up the pressure and delivered.

He scored a brilliant century and added 189 runs with his opening partner Kaustubh Pawar to guide Mumbai to a healthy 203 for three on the first day of their Ranji Trophy Elite Group A match in Lucknow on Tuesday.

Twenty six-year-old Marathe scored 102 off 163 balls. His innings was studded with 15 fours, while Pawar hit a patient 76 off 191 balls, laced with 10 boundaries, at the Dr Akhilesh Das Stadium to give Mumbai a slow but solid start.

Electing to bat, Mumbai raked up runs with consummate ease before losing Marathe, Abhishek Nayar and Pawar in quick succession in the last session to slip from 189 for no loss to 203 for three in 62.1 over.

South-paw Nayar, who has been in a superb form, got out cheaply for four.

For UP, medium-pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar scalped two for 64, while leg-spinner Piyush Chawla took one for 40 on the first day of the match, which started nearly two hours behind the schedule due to cold and fog.

Night-watchman Dhawal Kulkarni (2) and Mumbai captain Wasim Jafar (0) were at the crease at the draw of stumps.

It’s a do or die situation for UP, which lost its last match against Railways by an innings. They need a good performance to remain in race for the title.

Scorecard
Mumbai 1st innings
KR Pawar lbw b Chawla 76, S Marathe c Srivastava b Kumar 102, A Nayar c Dwivedi b Kumar 4, D Kulkarni batting 2, W Jaffer batting 0
Extras: (8B, 6W, pen 5) 19
Total: (3 wickets; 62.1 overs) 203 (3.26 runs per over)
Fall of wickets: 1-189, 2-197, 3-203
Bowling: RP Singh 13-4-41-0, B Kumar 18-3-64-2 (1W), I Ahmed 5-0-19-0, P Chawla 17.1-4-40-1 (1W), P Gupta 5-0-15-0, S Raina 4-1-11-0