CHENNAI: Dinesh Karthik’s brilliant century (156; 256b, 20x4, 1x6) put Tamil Nadu in control against Madhya Pradesh on the second day of the Elite Group B Ranji tie at MA Chidambaram Stadium here on Thursday. Karthik’s vintage innings enabled the hosts to pile up a mammoth 486.In reply, MP were reeling at 50 for 3 at stumps.
The way Karthik was playing on Wednesday one was sure he would get a big hundred as the ace stumper did not disappoint today. One could see determination in his body language and his choice of shots was impeccable. From the first ball itself it was clear that Dinesh was in for a big score. For those who had been watching Karthik since 2004 it was clear that he was playing like the way he used to play when he was in top form .
“It was brilliant effort from Karthik. In the last couple of games Karthik has been in good touch. Obviously the form he is in now reminds of how he was in 2004 and made it to the National side. His effort put us in a good position and helped post a challenging total,’’ said L Balaji, skipper of TN in praise of Dinesh.
Karthik with help of the tail kept the scoreboard moving and in the company of Yo Mahesh (34) added 93 in 30 overs to frustrate the visitors. When Mahesh was castled by Ishwar one could see the sense of relief in the MP side. A little while later a tired Dinesh was castled by Ankit. The TN innings did not fold and its tail wagged to raise 90 odd runs. The fact that TP Sudhindra MP’s main strike bowler went wicketless did not help the visitors cause. Ishwar although a bit expensive bagged four wickets,
“I am happy the way our tailenders played. They all chipped in with useful runs. Most of them are youngsters playing their first season in Ranji. Over a period of time they will mature and we should be patient with them,’’ reflected Balaji.
Chasing a huge target, MP top order caved into pressure. The TN bowlers particularly in Balaji fired all cylinders against the MP line-up and put them on the back foot. Balaji accounted for the dangerous Naman Ojha by inducing him to nick to Dinesh behind the stumps. Mohnish was castled by a peach of a delivery from J Kaushik and debutant Rahil Shah picked up his first wicket by trapping Devendra Bundela. On the whole it was a profitable day for TN.
“The wicket was good. It had something for the batsman and something for the bowlers. The first hour on Friday will be crucial and our bowlers will strive hard to make best use of the conditions,’’said Balaji.