CHENNAI: He’s flitted through the first seven places in various batting orders, and has delivered in almost each. He dons wicketkeeping gloves when he isn’t doing that. He’s also tried his hand at fast bowling. He wears his heart on his sleeve, attested to by his WhatsApp status: “keep working until his idols become his rivals”.
Though 20-year-old Narayan Jagadeesan’s been-there-done-that list is quite comprehensive, he isn’t letting up on extending it. The right-hander from Coimbatore made another addition on Friday, during the second day of Tamil Nadu’s Ranji Trophy Group A clash against Madhya Pradesh. He became the first Tamil Nadu batsman in nearly eight years (KB Arun Karthik was the one before) to score a century on debut in the event. That too after coming in at five-down.
“I did have butterflies in my stomach when I went in, but they disappeared after the first ball,” he told Express at the end of day’s play at the DRIEMS Ground. “As far as my switching of batting positions is concerned, everything boils down to adaptability. You’re always sent in as per the decided combination, so you can’t get too comfortable in one position.”
The 2014 Cooch Behar Trophy was when the cricketing fraternity took notice of Jagadeesan’s potential. His 500-run outing also included the first double-ton of his career. That streak of form served as the first domino for setting in motion Jagadeesan’s good run over the years to come.
Noteworthy performances in the Tamil Nadu Cricket Association (TNCA) First Division League and the Buchi Babu Invitation Tournament helped Jagadeesan earn a mention in the state’s 2015 Ranji probables list. But, that’s only as far as he got.
“I kept my focus on the first division. Once you settle down at that level, it helps provide a clearer picture for the future,” explained Jagadeesan. “I invested a lot of time in the nets, and worked on toughening up mentally. With a team that has the likes of Dinesh Karthik, it isn’t going to be an easy step-in. You have to pull up your socks.”
Though his outings this time around were relatively lukewarm, Lady Luck, the hard work he’d put, and the inaugural season of the Tamil Nadu Premier League concurred that he was far from done. A Player of the Tournament award at the event saw him end up in the Ranji probables list again. This time, though, Jagadeesan made the cut.
In Mumbai
Andhra 253 (Yuzvendra Chahal 5/81) & 95/3 vs Haryana 103 (D Siva Kumar 5/25).
Assam 325 (Amit Verma 166 n.o; Sreenath Aravind 5/70) vs Karnataka 223/2 (Robin Uthappa 108 n.o; Karun Nair 108 n.o).
In Jamshedpur
Kerala 207 (Sumit Ruikar 5/50) vs Chhattisgarh 179/9 (K Monish 3/34).
In Mohali
Odisha 237 vs Delhi 351/7 (Gautam Gambhir 147, Rishabh Pant 60; Dhiraj Singh 3/61) .
In Guwahati
Himachal Pradesh 36 (M Ravi Kiran 3/12, Akash Bhandari 4/0) vs Hyderabad 99/7 (Rishi Dhawan 6/35).
In Cuttack
Tamil Nadu 547/7 (Kaushik Gandhi 157, B Indrajith 68, N Jagadeesan 118 n.o; Ashwin Das 3/111) vs Madhya Pradesh.
rahulravi@newindianexpress.com