There were no wild celebrations, as has been the case right through this season by the Hyderabad cricketers. And, it was like a routine walk back to the dressing room by Chandan Sahani after he swung slow bowler Aryan Bora over mid-on for a six to clinch a five-wicket win for Hyderabad against Meghalaya on the fourth day of the Ranji Trophy Plate Group final at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium on Tuesday.
Resuming on the overnight score of 71 for one and needing 198 to win, Hyderabad was rarely in a spot of bother with southpaw G. Rahul Singh (62, 40b, 8x4, 2x6) in a hurry, not just to finish off the match but also try to reach the three-figure mark, which he has done thrice this season.
But he should be dejected for pulling one from pacer Chengkam Sangma straight to the fielder in the deep in the 12th over of the morning.
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This saw the classy captain Tilak Varma (64, 50b, 6x4, 2x6) and the gritty Rohit Rayudu (34, 61b, 1x4, 2x6) come together to put on 82 runs and dash whatever hopes Meghalaya had.
Tilak, looking good for another century this season, was caught at slip off a leading edge by Meghalaya captain Kishan Lyngdoh off Raj Biswa with just seven runs needed for a win.
Soon, even Rohit Rayudu stepped out to loft only to give a leading edge to backward short-leg fielder Jaskirant Singh off left-arm spinner Bora with still four needed for the win.
Even today, both Tilak and Rohit were involved in a couple of heated exchanges with the Meghalaya players, forcing the umpires to intervene.
But for those two gifted wickets, Meghalaya’s bowling was pretty ordinary this morning.
For the record, both Hyderabad and Meghalaya made it to the Elite Group for the next season by entering the final.
Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) President A. Jagan Mohan Rao, who gave away the prizes along with the Meghalaya Cricket Association officials, announced a cash incentive of Rs. 10 lakh for the Hyderabad team, which won the Ranji Trophy Plate Group championship final.
He also announced Rs. 50,000 each to ‘Player-of-the-final’ Nitesh Reddy, left-arm spinner Tanay Thyagarajan for his 10-wicket haul in the match, wicketkeeper batter Pragnay Reddy for his century, and captain Tilak.
Jagan Mohan also announced that if Hyderabad wins the Ranji Trophy championship in the Elite Group, Rs. 1 crore would be presented to the team and a BMW car to each member of the winning team.
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