TIRUNELVELI: Ahead of the second day’s play in the Ranji Trophy Group B game between Tamil Nadu and Hyderabad here on Tuesday, the hosts would have been quietly confident of making a comeback into the match. The situation was almost identical to their first game against Madhya Pradesh.
While MP were 214/3 at stumps on Day 1, Hyderabad was resuming from 249/3. But Hyderabad skipper Akshath Reddy had other plans. He did not put a foot wrong as he notched his maiden first-class double century, remaining unbeaten on 248. The visitors were in the driver’s seat, ending the day on a mammoth 523/7.
While the pitch did not help bowlers, take nothing away from Akshath’s innings. He showed his repertoire of strokes and did not let the bowlers settle down. Even when wickets fell and the bowlers resorted to a negative line, he kept running hard and kept the scoreboard ticking. In hot conditions, batting for 177 overs is no trivial achievement. He brought up his double century with a slog-swept four off left-arm spinner Rahil Shah.
“I tried to take it one ball at a time. Something that I had not managed in the past. I have been working hard on it and I’m glad it worked today. It was a matter of staying patient and not making an error,” Akshath said. His 477-ball knock was witness to 22 fours as well as three sixes.
When asked whether being given the captaincy has helped him express himself as a batsman, the 27-year-old said, “I have been captain before also but now I’m a lot more mature. I like leading from the front and helping the team. I’m happy that I managed to do it in this game.”
Giving him company was B Sandeep, who notched his seventh first-class ton, as the duo added 110 runs before the hardworking M Mohammed had him caught behind for 130. After Sandeep’s dismissal, K Sumanth (5) did not last long. Akash Bhandari (17) tried to get a move along but he became Varun Chakaravarthy’s only scalp. Akshath was again involved in a century partnership for the seventh wicket with Saaketh (42).
It was a difficult day’s work for the hosts. Skipper B Indrajith had to use as many as eight bowlers to try and stem the run-flow but to no avail. They tried to bowl a leg-side line to induce a false shot but Akshath & Co did not fall for it. In the process, Tamil Nadu also gave away 20 extras, which included 11 wides. Only K Vignesh, Mohammed and Rahil were rewarded with two wickets each for their efforts.
“It was difficult. Our boys have tried their hardest for 180 overs. The pitch offered no assistance. But we cannot lose hope. There are still two days left. We can still salvage the situation,” bowling coach L Balaji said.
Akshath knows that three points are there for the taking. But there is also the lure of the triple hundred. “Let’s see what happens in the first session tomorrow. Team goals always come first. We will declare our innings according to the situation.”
Scores
Elite Group A
In Nagpur: Vidarbha 307 (Srikant Wagh 57, J Suchith 4/33, Abhimanyu Mithun 3/53) vs Karnataka 208/5 (D Nischal 66 n.o, BR Sharath 46 n.o).
Elite Group B
In T’Puram: Andhra 254 (KC Akshay 4/64, Basil Thampi 3/50) vs Kerala 227/1 (Jalaj Saxena 127 n.o, KB Arun Karthick 56).
In Tirunelveli: Hyderabad 523/7 (Akshath Reddy 248 n.o, BP Sandeep 130) vs TN.
Elite Group C
In Bhubaneswar: Odisha 256 vs Uttar Pradesh 361/6 (Akshdeep Nath 151 n.o, Rinku Singh 72, Priyam Garg 59, Basant Mohanty 3/44).
Plate Group
In Puducherry: Pondicherry 389 (D Rohit 138, Gurinder Singh 4/106) vs Meghalaya 161/6 (Punit Bisht 58, Pankaj Singh 3/20).
ayantan@newindianexpress.com