It was nearly three years ago that Deepak Hooda played his last Ranji Trophy match. The past one year, however, saw him play 10 ODIs and 15 T20Is for India, not to mention his exploits at the IPL for Lucknow Super Giants.
On Tuesday, he celebrated his return to First Class cricket with a century that helped his new team, Rajasthan, stage a magnificent recovery on the opening day of the Ranji Trophy match against Kerala at Jaipur’s Sawai Mansingh Stadium. His 133 (187b, 14x4, 1x6) is the main reason why the host could reach 310 for five at stumps, after being put in.
Rajasthan was 101 for three when Hooda walked out in the middle. Opener Yash Kothari (58, 84b, 8x4), Abhijeet Tomar (10) and Mahipal Lomror (23) were all back in the dressing room and they were soon joined by captain Ashok Menaria for a duck, as the home side slumped to 105 for four.
But Hooda found staunch support from the new man Salman Khan (62 batting, 164b, 3x4), and they added 191 for the fifth wicket to frustrate the Kerala bowlers. Shortly before close, however, Hooda became off-spinner Jalaj Saxena’s second victim of the day.
It may not have been a particularly memorable day for Kerala, but it certainly was one for its newly-converted opener and comeback man Rohan Prem. He became the most capped First-Class cricketer for Kerala, beating the 89-match record of K.N. Ananthapadmanabhan.
READ: Ranji Trophy 2022/23 Day 1 Highlights
“I wasn’t aware of that record, but felt very happy when I came to know of it,” Rohan told Sportstar. “I am really glad that I could come back to the Kerala team after nearly three years.”
He would be looking forward to playing another substantial innings – he had two in the team’s win against Jharkhand at Ranchi – when Kerala gets to bat.
“The wicket eased out after lunch on the first day,” Rohan said. “We had taken four wickets to put Rajasthan under pressure, but Hooda and Salman batted resolutely. We want to take their remaining wickets as quickly as possible on the second day.”
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