Published: Sep 12, 2016, 09:44 PM (IST)
Edited: Sep 13, 2016, 11:51 AM (IST)
India Blue bowler Ravindra Jadeja marshaled the bowling attack against India Red on Day 3 to hand his team a 338-run lead by the end of days play. India Red resumed their innings on 16 for 2 with Shikhar Dhawan and skipper Yuvraj Sing batting on 14 and 0 runs respectively. Dhawan started Day 3 on a good note knocking a few boundaries off Pankaj Singh. Yuvraj looked uneasy getting for the mark after playing 27 deliveries. It was only Gurkeerat Singh Mann, Stuart Binny, Amit Mishra and Kuldeep Yadav who provide any resistance against the spin of Ravindra Jadeja. Jadeja was named in India’s Test side for the series against New Zealand. proved the selectors right with his near perfect display of bowling. ALSO READ: India announce squad for Test series vs New Zealand
Yuvraj Singh was the first wicket to fall as Mithun got him caught by a driving Cheteshwar Puajra . Yuvraj made a 71-ball 17. Jadeja soon sprung into action nabbing the key wicket of Shikhar Dhawan on 29. Dhawan in an bit to play the sweep shot lobbed the ball to the short leg fielder, who dived to take a near impossible catch. Meanwhile on the end, Gurkeerat Singh Mann was resisting anything the India Blue bowlers had to offer. Gurkeerat played almost a superb cameo for his team. Gurkeerat picked up three back-to-back boundaries just 4 balls into his innings. Gurkeerat along with Stuart Binny anchored the India Red’s innings to provide them with some respectability.
Gurkeerat along the way managed to record his 10th First-Class fifty . Gurkeerat achieved this milestone in 73 balls, which included eight fours. Gurkeerat departed soon after getting his fifty, adding just 7 more runs. Jadeja was again the chief tormentor getting Gurkeerat’s wicket off an absolute beauty of a ball. Jadeja gets the ball to drift and rattle Gurkeerats’s stumps, his second wicket of the day.
Indian discard Binny was adamant tot show the selectors what they had missed out on. Binny was very slow to begin with getting just 10 in his first fifty balls. With Gurkeerat going all guns blazing Binny could have easily afforded the wait. Both Binny and Gurkeerat added 63 runs for the fourth wicket, before Gurkeerat perished. Coming in next was Ankush Bains who tried to stick his neck out and bat against a dangerous looking Jadeja and Karn Sharma. Bains added 16 runs in 46 balls before handing Jadeja his third wicket. Bains trying to drive on the off side managed to give a sharp catch at second slip to Rohit Sharma.
With no more recognised batsmen Binny took over the reins of the India Red innings and started to open up knowing that Amit at the other end can provide resistance. Binny got to his half-century in 123 balls. Binny soon started making amend for his slow batting. Binny after getting to his fifty started hitting the likes of Jadeja, Karn Sharma and Parvez Rasool for boundaries at will. Binny who was looking good for a hundred got out on 98 off 159 balls which included 12 four’s and 4 massive sixes. Jadeja was the man to outfox Binny striking him on his pads of a ball which turned viciously. This could have been his first FC ton since 2014.
Both Binny and Amit added 64 runs for the seventh wicket.
Coming in next was Kuldeep Yadav, who batted amazingly well along with Mishra. Much like his knock in against West Indies last month , Mishra wasted no time to get his bat do all the talking. Mishra took much liking to Rasool smashing for 14 runs in the 75th over. Mishra soon took on the like of Pankaj Singh and Mithun. Mishra got to his half-century in style with a cracking boundary straight down the ground in just 50 balls. Mishra did not stop their as he went on hitting fluent boundaries.
Karn was the lucky man to get the wicket of Amit who made a splendid 77-ball 65, in the very same over Karn had got hit on the hand by a drive. Amit gave his wicket away this time trying to out wit the bowler. Amit and Kuldeep added added 86 runs for the eighth wicket.
Kuldeep continued to make merry with the bat, playing a crucial knock for his team. Kuldeep got his half-century in the same as many of his peers with a smashing boundary in just 79 balls. Karn had the final laugh as he picked up Kuldeep for 59 runs to a simple catch at slip by Gautam Gambhir.
Post that it was just a procession as Pradeep Sangwan gave his wicket away to hand Jadeja his 5-for in the innings. Yet again Jadega got the ball to skid on and crash into the pads of the batsmen. India Red were bundled out for 336 handing India Blue a lead of 337 runs. Jadeja was the pick of the bowlers for India Blue picking 5 for 95, second best was Pankaj who nabbed 2 for 42.
India Blue skipper Gambhir decided not to enforce the follow-on and came out to bat with Mayank Agarwal. Both played out just 2 overs to finish at 1 for 0, with an overall lead of 338 runs at stumps with two days of play still remaining.
Brief Scores:
India Blue 693 for 6 decl. (Gautam Gambhir 94, Cheteshwar Pujara 256*, Sheldon Jackson 134; Amit Mishra 2 for 171) & 1 for 0 (Gautam Gambhir 1*, Mayank Agarwal 0*; Pradeep Sangwan 0 for 0) lead India Red 356 all out (Stuart Binny 98, Amit Mishra 65; Ravindra Jadeja 5 for 95 ) by 338 runs.
