Image Credit: twitter.com/@IndianIdcf
Sarfaraz Khan, who was playing well, and bowler Mukesh Kumar gave the Rest of India the upper hand against the hosts and defending champions Saurashtra on the opening day of the Irani Cup 2022 on Saturday at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium.
The rest of India finished the day with a score of 205-3 and a lead of 107 runs after dismissing Saurashtra for just 98 in the first innings. After winning the toss and deciding to bowl first, the bowler Mukesh Kumar established the tone with the ball for the rest of India when he bowled Harvik Desai and Chirag Jani for ducks off successive balls in the third over of the session.
Saurashtra experienced a further shock as Cheteshwar Pujara was out caught by Kuldeep Sen in the subsequent over. Up to Snell Patel’s 5/4, when he was hit from behind, they kept dropping till Mukesh claimed his third wicket.
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Arpit Vasavada made a strong counterattack before being dismissed by Umran Malik, scoring 22 runs off 19 deliveries. Umran Malik and Kuldeep Sen each scored three runs to complete Saurashtra’s innings with a pathetic total. The captain, Jaydev Unadkat, and Dharmendrasinh Jadeja, who played lower in the order, each made a few runs.
The left-arm opening team of Unadkat and Chetan Sakariya responded by causing problems for the rest of India. The pair removed the top three (18/3) in just five overs, improving the chances for the hosts. With their inventive stroke play, Sarfaraz and skipper Hanuma Vihari did, however, put up a solid, unbroken fourth-wicket partnership.
To slog through the run chase for his 62, Vihari put up a 145-ball vigil at one end. Sarfaraz, on the other hand, erupted to an almost run-a-ball 125 at the other end, with just 88 runs coming from boundaries. Their uninterrupted 187-run partnership ensured that the Rest of India didn’t waste the benefit of their bowlers.
Short scores: Rest of India 205/3 (Sarfaraz Khan 125 not out, Hanuma Vihari 62 not out) leads Saurashtra 98 all out (D. Jadeja 28; Mukesh Kumar 4-23, Kuldeep Sen 3-41, Umran Malik 3-25) by 107 runs.
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