Rinku's century ends Tamil Nadu's hopes of qualifying for Ranji knockouts
CHENNAI: Man of the Match Rinku Singh's magnificent century 176 (247b, 17x4, 6x6) and useful contributions from the tail came in handy for Uttar Pradesh to take a slender lead of five runs over Tamil Nadu in the drawn match of the Ranji Trophy Elite Group 'A' match played at CDCA-Sri Ramakrishna College of Arts & Science grounds, Coimbatore on Wednesday.
Uttar Pradesh were all out for 460 in 145.1 overs, with P Vidyuth picking up four wickets and Sai Kishore bagging three wickets.
Tamil Nadu were 103 for 2 in 21 overs in their second essay with B Sachin making 59 and N Jagadeesan scoring 44, when the match was called off around 2.40 pm.
Rinku, who is a proven match winner in white ball, shone under pressure to slam his best individual score in First-Class cricket. Resuming from his overnight 98, Rinku completed his ninth First-Class century in style.
Coming in at No 5 on Tuesday, Rinku anchored UP's chase with remarkable precision without losing his composure even once. He showed the ability to play with the tail in the longer format of the game.
Rinku stitched a crucial 53-run stand with Shivam Sharma (22) for the seventh wicket, followed by a 59-run partnership with Kartik Yadav (20) for the eighth, ensuring that his team stayed in the hunt for the lead.
When well set to finish the task, he fell to P Vidyuth while attempting a big hit, to be caught by Sonu Yadav at long on. At that point of time, Uttar Pradesh still needed 12 more to surpass Tamil Nadu's total. Aaqib Khan (14 not out off 29 balls) and Kunal Tyagi (5) held their nerve to take UP past Tamil Nadu total. Aaqib bravely hit a six and four off Sai Kishore to ensure that his team got three points.
For Tamil Nadu it was a case of so near so far as they once again conceded a lead. "As long as Rinku was there we knew the task (bag lead) would be difficult. But once we got him out, we were hoping to get the lead. But Aaqib with his lusty strikes spoiled our plans," said Viduyth after the match.
Vidyuth, who had his career best figures in the game, insisted that it was a good learning experience. "It feels good to bag four wickets and put up my best effort so far. But at the same time I feel sad that we could not take the lead. Nevertheless it was a good learning experience for me. Bowling to a player like Rinku was challenging. I will come out rich with the experience and it will come in handy in the future," said Vidyuth.
The soft spoken youngster cherished bowling along with a seasoned campaigner like Sai Kishore. "It was great to bowl along with Sai Kishore. I learnt a lot from him, like how to bowl in a particular situation and handle pressure. Also I learnt what kind of fields to set and bowl to a powerful hitter like Rinku Singh. He (Sai Kishore) also helped me in what lines and angles to bowl to a particular batter. It was a rewarding experience in a high scoring game. As I said earlier had we got the lead I would have been happier," signed off Vidyuth.