“One of the best days of my career so far.”
It wasn’t surprising to see Lakshay Garg, with a heavily strapped ankle, summing up the first day’s play of Goa’s first-ever clash versus Mumbai in Ranji Trophy.
Instead of being overawed by the team that has won Ranji Trophy more times than the number of years Goa has been participating in the premier domestic First Class competition, Garg's inspired six-wicket spell helped his side steal an early advantage.
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Two of his dismissals were the big fishes Prithvi Shaw and Ajinkya Rahane. But Garg, having been born and brought up in Goa with his family shifting from Delhi to the coastal paradise even before he was born, did his best to play down the achievement.
“Whenever I have got an opportunity to play against the big teams, I have done well. So when we saw the groups, I knew that doing well against big teams like Saurashtra and Mumbai will help me and our team
improve our performance and perception,” Garg told Sportstar .
It’s only once - during the last edition of the tournament (2019-20) - that Goa, in its 37-year sojourn, has made it to the Ranji Trophy knockouts. While he fared well in the quarterfinal loss against Gujarat, Garg had an impressive season in 2018-19, picking 37 wickets at 29.72 apiece.
“But that was in Plate, so now I along with my teammates, all of us are in our early or mid-20s, are aspiring to excel at the big stage to prove that we belong here. I am glad with the way we delivered today and hope we can carry on in the same vein for the remaining match,” Garg said.
Despite twisting his ankle while bowling his seventh over in the morning session, Garg returned to scalp three more before being forced to head back into the change-room after another seven-over spell.
But he isn’t worried about having damaged his landing leg. “It’s the first day and the team may need my contribution yet again in the second innings, so best to keep the thoughts of the injury away for
now,” he said.
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