If you are a team trying to revive its fortunes in the country’s premier domestic tournament after nearly half a decade of underperformance, there is no better way to show that things are looking up than by beating the defending champion in a knockout game.
Tamil Nadu did just that and in some style by thrashing Saurashtra by an innings and 33 runs in three days in the quarterfinals of the Ranji Trophy in Coimbatore at the Sri Ramakrishna College grounds on Sunday.
R. Sai Kishore’s men have made it to the semifinals for the first time since 2016-17, the last time TN made the knockouts before this year.
“To beat a team like Saurashtra, that too by an innings is fantastic. We are a team that is hungry and enjoying each other’s success,” Sulkashan Kulkarni, the coach of TN, said.
The skipper was yet again at the forefront of things as he took four wickets in Saurashtra’s second innings to help his side to its third ‘innings-victory’ of the season, all of which have come at this venue.
It was a dream game for the 27-year-old, who finished with match figures of nine for 93 and made a crucial 60 with the bat.
“We did better than what we expected of ourselves. I thought we could try to win by the fourth day, but we did not expect to do it on the third day,” he remarked.
The host resumed the day ahead by 117 runs, and Saurashtra’s pacers quickly took three wickets with the second new ball and did not allow the home team to run away with the game. However, an industrious 29-run partnership between the last pair of Ajith Ram and Sandeep Warrier ensured TN got a lead of 155.
“Everyone showed up under pressure. The lower-order contribution is important, and that is where matches get decided. We are trying to give batting to everyone in the nets, and I am happy it is showing results,” the skipper said.
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Warrier then opened the floodgates to have Harvik Desai trapped in front and sent Sheldon Jackson’s middle stump flying off the first ball after lunch. From there on, the TN spin attack slowly chipped away at the visitors’ batting line-up. Though TN was a bit sloppy in the field, dropping both Cheteshwar Pujara and Arpit Vasavada once, the home team’s bowlers were regularly beating the bat.
Off-spinner Mohammed Ali got the breakthrough when he had Vasavada caught behind before Ajith Ram got two in two balls, removing Prerak Mankad and Chirag Jani.
Pujara played a valiant knock, soaking up the pressure, but Sai Kishore eventually got the big scalp caught behind.
“We did not want to give air to the deliveries so that he couldn’t use his feet. We wanted to pin him to the crease and block his scoring areas, which worked,” Sai Kishore explained.
The play was extended by eight overs at 4.45 p.m. to attempt to finish the match with just two wickets needed.
Warrier first breached Jaydev Unadkat’s defence, and fittingly, Sai Kishore closed out the game in the last over of the day to help TN become the first team to reach the last four this year.
“After we defeated Saurashtra in the previous season, we had to go home as we did not qualify for the knockouts, and they went on to win the title. This time, we beat them again, and we hope to win the trophy,” summarised Warrier after the game.
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