Published: Dec 23, 2016, 08:09 PM (IST)
Edited: Dec 23, 2016, 08:09 PM (IST)
Title holders Mumbai recovered from a poor start against Hyderabad in the first quarter-final of the Ranji Trophy 2016-17 season on Day One at the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Stadium, Raipur. After winning the toss and opting to bat first, Mumbai were soon reduced to 34 for 4 by Hyderabad pacers Chama Milind and Mohammed Siraj. However, Mumbai skipper Aditya Tare (73) added 105 runs for the fifth wicket with Siddhesh Lad (101 not out) to repair the damage. Further, Lad continued to lead the charge after Tare’s dismissal by adding unbeaten 111 runs for the sixth wicket with Abhishek Nayar (46 not out). Thanks to the trio, Mumbai ended Day One on 250 for 5. For Hyderabad, Milind took 3 while Siraj bagged 2 wickets.
Mumbai started their title defence in the knockouts with a new opening pair of Kevin Almeida and Praful Waghela, both of whom had last represented Mumbai two and four years back respectively. The two got this chance in all-important game after regular opener Akhil Herwadkar was ruled out due to injury and Jay Bista was dropped due to indifferent form. The duo could add just 12 runs as Almeida was removed by Milind for 9. A couple of balls later, impact player Shreyas Iyer too got dismissed by Milind for naught.
With score reading 12 for 2, Suryakumar Yadav walked out to bat. But he too did not trouble the scorers and fell for 5, becoming Siraj’s first victim. Waghela (13) fell with the team score reading 34, and Mumbai looked in all sorts of trouble. Here on, Tare and Lad joined forces and added 105 runs. Tare hit his 14th First-Class fifty at just the right time, with his team needing it the most. He fell for 73 but Lad brought in his fourth First-Class hundred and along with the veteran batsman Nayar, consolidated Mumbai’s position, as the current champions ended Day One on 250 for 5.
Brief scores:
Mumbai 250 for 5 (Siddhesh Lad 101*, Aditya Tare 73, Abhishek Nayar 46*; Chama Milind 3 for 63, Mohammed Siraj 2 for 58) against Hyderabad.
