Abhinav Mukund hails Murali Vijay and Ravi Ashwin's influence after draw against Mumbai
The fourth and final day of the third round of the Ranji Trophy involving the home team, Mumbai and Tamil Nadu ended in a hard-fought draw with the visiting outfit pocketing three points on the basis of the first innings lead they secured at the MCA Sharad Pawar Indoor Cricket Academy Ground.
One of the most fiercely-contested rivalries of recent times, the match lived up to all the hype and expectations as it showcased four days of quality cricket from both the sides with Tamil Nadu holding their nerve and scampering through to an all-important first innings lead.
After winning the toss and electing to bat first, Mumbai managed to post 374 runs in their first outing courtesy a masterclass from Prithvi Shaw. The teenage batting prodigy was well supported by Shreyas Iyer and Aditya Tare, both of them scoring well-made half-centuries.
With the quality of batting in the opposition ranks, 374 seemed a tad below-par on a batting paradise, but that was not the case as Mumbai bounced back with a couple of quick wickets.
However, the young middle order comprising Baba Indrajith and Washington Sundar steadied the ship. After tottering at 69 runs for the loss of four wickets, the duo stitched a crucial fifth-wicket partnership of 157 to help their side inch closer to the target on the second day.
With plenty to play for in the colossal clash, the third day provided plenty of excitement to the handful of spectators with the visiting side seizing the vital lead. Riding on centuries from Indrajith and comeback man, Yomahesh, Tamil Nadu ended their innings on 450.
While there was hardly any chance for the Mumbai team to make a comeback into the game with the flat track on offer, they made ample use of the final day of play to gain some much-needed batting practice in the middle. After losing Prithvi Shaw early in the second innings, Akhil Herwadkar and Shreyas Iyer saw the side through to stumps with 85 runs on the board.
The final day of the match did not have much of an impact on the outcome of the game with the hosts batting all day to end with 371 runs for the loss of five wickets. Iyer went hammer and tongs, scoring a brutal 138 runs off 124 deliveries with 11 boundaries and nine huge hits.
The day also witnessed one of the best innings by a young left-hander, Akhil Herwadkar. Akhil featured at the expanse of Jay Bista despite the latter scoring a match-winning hundred against Madhya Pradesh in the previous clash.
After missing out in the first innings, the 22-year-old walked out to bat under tremendous pressure and played one of his most matured innings ever.
He started slowly by grinding out the bowlers but soon found his timing after crossing the fifty run mark. Thereafter, he took the attack to the opposition by scoring freely all over the ground. With a quick single to mid on, the southpaw recorded a well-deserved hundred.
"The pressure will always be there. It is healthy competition in the team when everybody is scoring. Nobody is taking their places for granted. If we keep performing well individually, the team also does well," Akhil said when quizzed about the competition for places in the team.
With the result not going in favour of the Mumbai team, the opener gave an honest assessment, saying, "Disappointed with the result but I think the first innings total was very less. On this wicket, 374 runs were not enough; we needed to score 450 to 500 runs."
On the other hand, Tamil Nadu skipper Mukund was elated after his side's performance away from home.
"I think it is always good to come to Mumbai and get a fairly decent result. Barring a couple of good innings from them, I think our bowlers stuck to their plans and our batters came good while it was their turn to bat," he said after the end of the game.
Tamil Nadu were bolstered with the inclusions of international stars in Ravichandran Ashwin and Murali Vijay for this encounter. And the skipper was quick to talk about their influence in the team, crediting them for their valuable inputs.
"I think they have been a great addition to me even on the filed, their inputs have been valuable. Vijay has been talking to a lot of batters and Ashwin has been talking to the spinners. Washington has done well and he is new, there is another kid, Sai Kishore who has done well in the league and Ashwin has been working a lot with him."
The visitors will head back home with plenty of positives from this match after outclassing one of the firm favourites for this prestigious tournament in their own backyard.