CHENNAI: Riding on Ajith Ram's career best 7 for 48, Tamil Nadu defeated Chandigarh by an innings and 259 runs on the final day of the Ranji Trophy Elite 'D' group match played at Sector 16 cricket stadium, Chandigarh, on Thursday. They took just less than eight overs (seven overs and five balls to be precise) to take the remaining three wickets and register their third outright win in a row.
Tamil Nadu got seven points (including a bonus) from this outing. With a total of 21 points from four games, Tamil Nadu are placed second in their group with Mumbai occupying the top spot with 27 points.
Resuming from the overnight score of 189 for 7, Chandigarh were all out for 218 with Ajith Ram taking all the three wickets to fall on Thursday. Ajith with a quicker one made Rohit Dhanda edge to G Ajitesh at silly point. Then he foxed Nikhil Sharma with a straighter one to trap the Chandigarh tailender plumb in front. The left-arm spinner castled Jagjit Singh with a peach of a delivery to complete the formality as the Tamil Nadu players and staff in the dressing room went into a celebratory mood.
Ajith with his century and five wicket haul became the fourth player from Tamil Nadu to achieve this unique feat. He joins the likes of AG Ram Singh (against Hyderabad 1935), BC Alva (against Mysore 1950) and S Vasudevan (against Kerala 1978) to bag the unique double.
"It feels great to contribute to Tamil Nadu's victory. It feels amazing to beat a team outright and that too an innings victory. So all of us are happy with this convincing win. I never knew about the record," an elated Ajith told this daily after the match.
Pradosh Ranjan Paul was adjudged the Man of the Match, but the former Tamil Nadu captain chose to share the award with Ajith. "He gave me credit in front of everyone. They awarded him Man of the Match and he shared the recognition with me. It was a great gesture from him as well," said Ajith with a sense of pride.
Comeback after long lay-off
Ajith came into the season after a long lay-off due to injury. In the first match against Rajasthan, he was dropped as Washington Sundar played. Then in the first innings against Chandigarh he bowled just three overs, gave away four runs and went wicketless. But in the second innings he was almost unplayable and slowly and steadily plotted his dismissal.
"When I began this season after injury I did not expect to come this far. Because after the injury, I wasn't sure how much I had left in me, but to end up here, I'm very grateful to God. I'm also thankful to my family and my wife. And everyone who supported me throughout this journey," said an emotional Ajith.
Coming back to the game, the genial all-rounder said that he stuck to basics and bowled in the right areas with patience to pick up wickets. "Today morning I did not do anything different. Just stuck to my basics, I just tried to bowl in good areas. I hit the deck consistently in the right areas with a little bit of flight and turn depending upon how the batter was approaching," revealed Ajith.
He thanked all the coaches and trainers who helped him recover from injury and bowl at his best once again. "There are many people who have helped me throughout and different stages of my recovery. Different people have helped me and I would like to thank all of them who have been there for me and helped me improve. Especially the few bowling coaches who have worked with me at different stages of my career. At my club Senthil Sir, then Sunny Gupta," recalled Ajith.
Sunil Subramaniam, the chairman of the senior state selection committee of the TNCA himself was a renowned left arm spinner in his playing days. Ajith also spoke about his inputs. "He (Sunil sir) just wanted me to go out there and express myself. That's all. He was confident about my bowling. And he knew that I could contribute to the team's performance," said Ajith Ram.
