Nagpur: Bowlers overcame stiff resistance from the rival captain, a couple of doubtful umpiring decisions, and a docile pitch to tilt the balance in Vidarbha’s favour in the Ranji Trophy match against Uttarakhand on Saturday.
Thanks largely to a fighting century by skipper Samarth R (119; 241b;12×4), Uttarakhand finished day 2 of the Elite Group ‘B’ encounter on 242 for 7. The hosts are still 84 runs adrift of Vidarbha’s first innings total. With just the tail-enders left, Vidarbha will look to wrap up the Uttarakhand innings at the earliest on Day 3.
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Led by Akshay Wakhare (3-47), Vidarbha bowlers were on the money for the entire day. Barring Samarth, the former Karnataka player, the Vidarbha bowlers had the measure of every one of the Uttarakhand batting lineup. Samarth made the most after surviving a close lbw appeal early in his innings.
Pacer Aditya Thakare (2-39) gave Uttarakhand an early jolt by removing opener Vaibhav Bhatt in the fourth over. Coming in at No. 3, Samarth kept the Uttarakhand innings going, framing one partnership after the other. While Samarth scored a ton, his second of the season, none of the other Uttarakhand batters managed to go past the 30-run mark.
Samarth stitched his first partnership of the day with Avneesh Sudha that took Uttarakhand to 51in 14.4 overs. Akshay Karnewar, in his first over of the day, removed Sudha. Post the dismissal, Samarth along with Kunal Chandela denied Vidarbha bowlers a wicket for close to 19 overs while adding 47 runs for the third wicket.
Wakhare, the off spinner playing his 100th First Class match, struck in his second over of the day, the 34th of Uttarakhand’s innings, sending back Chandela (19;57b;2×4). Undeterred by Chandela’s dismissal, Samarth kept the Uttarakhand resistance going in company of Yuvraj Choudhary. The two batted out almost the entire second session, adding 67 runs for the fourth wicket.
With Samarth and Choudhary playing cautiously, Vidarbha bowlers failed to make inroads for 28.4 overs, the longest wicketless period they endured on Day 2. Wakhare, the most experienced among Vidarbha bowlers, delivered when the team needed a wicket most. Wakhare’s twin strikes – Choudhary (28;84b;1×4) and Aditya Tare (4;13b) – in successive overs reduced Uttarakhand to 169 for 5.
Next up, Samarth found an able ally in Swapnil Singh. Aditya Thakare, with the second new ball in hand, broke the stubborn sixth wicket partnership between Samarth and Swapnil Singh, which yielded 69 runs, the highest of the day for Uttarakhand. The partnership kept Vidarbha bowlers at bay for 21.5 overs before Thakare induced an edge of Singh, the No. 7 batter, which was pocketed by Dhruv Shorey.
Two balls later, Praful Hinge, who went wicketless on Day 2, delivered the most telling blow – via a run out – as his throw caught Samarth short of the crease and all but ended Uttarakhand’s resistance.
Brief scores:
Vidarbha: 326 all out in 88 overs lead Uttarakhand 242 for 7 in 87 overs (Samarth R 119; Avneesh Sudha 30, Yuvraj Choudhary 28; Akshay Wakhare 3-47, Aditya Thakare 2-39, Akshay Karnewar 1-40) by 84 runs.
