CHENNAI: After Vimal Khumar on Day 1, it was the turn of G Ajitesh to frustrate the Jammu and Kashmir bowlers with a punishing century (101; 162b, 14x4) on the second day of the All India Buchi Babu Invitation Tournament being played at CSK-HPC grounds on the outskirts of the city on Monday. Ajitesh's effort put TNCA President's XI in command as they were comfortably placed at 503/7 in 180 overs at stumps.
Under overcast conditions and the wicket being a bit tricky in the morning which had a bit of moisture, Ajitesh applied himself and came out with flying colours. Ajitesh was involved in a couple of 50 plus partnerships: For fifth wicket, he added 89 runs with C Andre Siddarth. Then for the sixth wicket along with Ambrish he added 88 runs.
"Delighted to score my maiden century in Buchi Babu. Very pleased with my effort as it served the team's cause," said Ajitesh after the day's play. "Under overcast conditions and a bit of a tricky surface, I first played it safe and to the merit of the ball and wanted to see off the first hour or so. Then when the conditions improved I slowly started playing my natural game and runs came at a consistent pace," he added.
Ajitesh also credited fellow batters for guiding him through the innings. "Yes I had small chats with Andre and Ambrish as to how to first play quietly under overcast conditions and not take any risks by playing across the line or lofted shots. We wanted to go with the flow of the ball. With Ambrish too I wanted to score as many runs as possible as the conditions were getting better. The idea was not to throw away the wickets early in the morning and give the visitors the advantage," revealed the 22-year old.
There is a three way race for the second wicketkeeper's slot as it is a battle between Lokeshwar S, Tushar Raheja and Ajitesh. "Yes I am aware of the competition. But I was not thinking about that, I just wanted to contribute for the team."
Tamil Nadu chief coach, who is also the coach of TNCA President's XI, doffed his hat to Ajitesh. "Yeah, it was an awesome innings from Ajitesh. He played confidently on both sides of the wicket and then he was running very well. Running between the wickets was excellent. And I think he got to play around 150 -160 balls, which is very good going at number 6. That's the stability we required at number 6," complimented M Senthilnathan.
"He paced his innings very well. Initially he was just waiting and then slowly he picked up. And he and Andre had a good partnership. Then with Ambrish too he put on some runs. So that's how the team's mindset should be, how to build innings. It's like a Ranji Trophy (Buchi Babu game) where they have to be preparing themselves," pointed out the former Tamil Nadu top order batter.
"You know the one good thing in this game with every partnership was, once a wicket fell, the new man in was trying to be there for some time. They were not trying to go for the shots straight away," he added.
Speaking on the second wicketkeeper's slot in the state team, he said, "Let the selectors do their job. Competition has to be there. It's a healthy competition. At the end of the day, the selectors will give the team to me then I will do my job."
There have been occasions in the past when a second wicketkeeper played as a batter when N Jagadeesan kept wickets in Ranji Trophy. "But at the moment, I would rather pick horses for courses. So if I am pushed to that situation after having the 15, then we'll take a call at that time. I am not averse to the idea of playing a second wicketkeeper as a batter. It depends upon the situation, if a opener is injured and the slot is vacant, we can draft in a wicketkeeper who can open. If the second wicketkeeper is a middle order batter, I would not send him opening. So as I said earlier it all depends upon the situation," revealed Senthilnathan.
Brief scores: At CSK HPC: TNCA President's XI 503/7 in 180 ovs (Vimal Khumar 112, Pradosh Ranjan Paul 91, C Andre Siddarth 57, G Ajitesh 101, RS Ambrish 62 batting) vs Jammu & Kashmir. At Guru Nanak: Hyderabad 225 & 49/1 in 16 ovs (Aman Rao 30 batting) vs Haryana 208 in 79.3 ovs (Himanshu Rana 75, Parth Vats 36, Rohith Rayudu 5/63).