CHENNAI:An unbeaten century by Vijay Shankar (106 not out;165b, 9x4, 4x6) helped Tamil Nadu to force a draw against Chhattisgarh on the final day of the third round of the Ranji Trophy played at Sri Ramakrishna College Grounds, Coimbatore on Tuesday. Tamil Nadu were 264 for 4 in 76 overs in their second essay when play was called off.
Chhattisgarh skipper Amandeep Khare, while talking to this daily on Monday evening, had hoped that his spinners would make the most of the wearing surface on the final day. He wanted his team to pile on the pressure on Tamil Nadu's middle order and push for a win. But come Tuesday, the Tamil Nadu batters had other ideas. They put up a solid batting display to foil the visiting team's plans.
Vijay, in particular, was in the zone. Using all his experience, Vijay notched up his 10th first-class hundred and his first at the venue.
Having been made to follow on, Tamil Nadu were in desperate need of this kind of performance. It's no surprise that Vijay is a pleased man. "I'm very happy with my century. It gave me a lot of satisfaction as it served the team's cause," Vijay told this daily.
Vijay entered the crease when Tamil Nadu were in a tricky position (90 for 2). But Vijay was not fazed by the situation he found himself in. He played an assured innings to see out the day.
"All I wanted to do was play positively, be judicious in shot selection and also score runs at the same time. If you play too defensive without scoring runs, then you could end up getting out. So, I wanted to be positive in my approach and play as long as possible and ensure we drew the game," he reflected.
"The wicket was good to bat. This is where the problem lies as one tends to go for shots randomly. I curtailed all the risks and used my discretion in shot selection," added the former Tamil Nadu captain.
The rest of the batters also ably did what was necessary to keep Tamil Nadu afloat. Skipper N Jagadeesan, who scored 49 in the first essay, scored 60. Pradosh Ranjan Paul, who scored an unbeaten 39, stepped up later to ensure Tamil Nadu's safety. He shared a 76-run unbeaten stand for the fifth wicket with Vijay. The latter was quick to acknowledge their valuable contribution.
"Partnerships are very crucial, especially when you want to save a game. All our batters rose to the challenge and we had a couple of good partnerships going. Their little things (partnerships) ease the pressure and boost the confidence of the players to go about the task which was to play the day out," Vijay assessed.
As it was sort of a comeback for Vijay, he was visibly emotional. Out of his 10 First Class tons, this will hold a special place in his heart. "This century (against Chhattisgarh) is the No. 1 century of my career. This game was like a comeback game for me. So, a lot of emotions. Lots of difficult things, but happy that I got a 100," said Vijay.
It was not the result that he had hoped for but Amandeep was pleased with his side's overall effort. "We wanted to win the game, but our bowlers could not bowl with the same rhythm like we did on Monday and get purchase today (Tuesday). Tamil Nadu got a couple of partnerships going and also Vijay Shankar played brilliantly," he said.