Coimbatore: On the eve of the marquee quarterfinal clash against Saurashtra here, Tamil Nadu head coach Sulakshan Kulkarni said: “It is simple. If we want to lift the Ranji Trophy, we have to beat champion teams.” On Sunday, TN, desperately gunning for their first Ranji crown in over three decades, did just that to send the defending champions packing.
An impressive bowling performance, led by skipper and left-arm spinner R Sai Kishore (4-27 off 26.4 overs), enabled the southern heavyweights to record an innings and 33-run victory and wrap up the lop-sided contest on the third day.After breaking no sweat to thrash Saurashtra at the Sri Ramakrishna College Ground, TN, who have progressed to the last-four stage for the first time since 2016-17, will next face either Mumbai or Baroda.
Having earned a 155-run first-innings advantage after posting 338, the Sai Kishore-led side bundled Saurashtra out for 122 in their second essay. TN got the job done in the extended phase of play, after the hosts were only two wickets away from a win when they completed the stipulated overs for the day. Veteran Cheteshwar Pujara (46 off 170 balls, 5×4) waged a lone battle with a patient knock, but could not prevent Saurashtra from losing the war badly.
Pace spearhead Sandeep Warrier (3-18 off 12 overs) breathed fire with the new ball, before left-arm spin bowlers Sai Kishore and S Ajith Ram (2-35 off 24 overs) ran riot. Warrier, TN’s unsung hero in this campaign, dismissed opener Harvik Desai LBW with a ball that kept low and produced a superb delivery to castle Sheldon Jackson. After the early double blow, the spinners, including part-time offie S Mohamed Ali (1-11), did the bulk of the damage.
Pujara and Arpit Vasavada (20) delayed the inevitable with a 55-run fourth-wicket stand, following which the visitors lost wickets in a heap. On a surface that deteriorated as the match progressed, the slow-bowling trio spun TN to victory, with Saurashtra seeing their last seven wickets fall for just 19 runs – from 103-3 to 122 all-out. The freefall included the dismissals of Pujara and Vasavada, who were both caught behind off Sai Kishore and Mohamed respectively. After removing Pujara, Sai Kishore – knowing full well that there was no way for the reigning champs to mount an improbable comeback – let out a huge roar and celebrated by pointing to the skies. In extended time, Warrier cleaned up Jaydev Unadkat’s stumps, while Sai Kishore closed out the game in the last over of the day.
Sai Kishore said that he was pleasantly surprised to see TN complete the task with two days remaining. “We did better than what we expected of ourselves. I told that we will try to win by the fourth day. We did not expect to do it on the third day.” At the start of the day, Saurashtra had kept their faint hopes alive by picking the last four TN wickets in quick time.
Brief scores: Saurashtra 183 & 122 in 75.4 overs (Cheteshwar Pujara 46; R Sai Kishore 4-27, Sandeep Warrier 3-18, S Ajith Ram 2-35). Tamil Nadu 338 in 119.4 overs (R Sai Kishore 60, Baba Indrajith 80, M Boopathi Vaishna Kumar 65; Chirag Jani 3-22). TN won by an innings & 33 runs.
An impressive bowling performance, led by skipper and left-arm spinner R Sai Kishore (4-27 off 26.4 overs), enabled the southern heavyweights to record an innings and 33-run victory and wrap up the lop-sided contest on the third day.After breaking no sweat to thrash Saurashtra at the Sri Ramakrishna College Ground, TN, who have progressed to the last-four stage for the first time since 2016-17, will next face either Mumbai or Baroda.
Having earned a 155-run first-innings advantage after posting 338, the Sai Kishore-led side bundled Saurashtra out for 122 in their second essay. TN got the job done in the extended phase of play, after the hosts were only two wickets away from a win when they completed the stipulated overs for the day. Veteran Cheteshwar Pujara (46 off 170 balls, 5×4) waged a lone battle with a patient knock, but could not prevent Saurashtra from losing the war badly.
Pace spearhead Sandeep Warrier (3-18 off 12 overs) breathed fire with the new ball, before left-arm spin bowlers Sai Kishore and S Ajith Ram (2-35 off 24 overs) ran riot. Warrier, TN’s unsung hero in this campaign, dismissed opener Harvik Desai LBW with a ball that kept low and produced a superb delivery to castle Sheldon Jackson. After the early double blow, the spinners, including part-time offie S Mohamed Ali (1-11), did the bulk of the damage.
Pujara and Arpit Vasavada (20) delayed the inevitable with a 55-run fourth-wicket stand, following which the visitors lost wickets in a heap. On a surface that deteriorated as the match progressed, the slow-bowling trio spun TN to victory, with Saurashtra seeing their last seven wickets fall for just 19 runs – from 103-3 to 122 all-out. The freefall included the dismissals of Pujara and Vasavada, who were both caught behind off Sai Kishore and Mohamed respectively. After removing Pujara, Sai Kishore – knowing full well that there was no way for the reigning champs to mount an improbable comeback – let out a huge roar and celebrated by pointing to the skies. In extended time, Warrier cleaned up Jaydev Unadkat’s stumps, while Sai Kishore closed out the game in the last over of the day.
Sai Kishore said that he was pleasantly surprised to see TN complete the task with two days remaining. “We did better than what we expected of ourselves. I told that we will try to win by the fourth day. We did not expect to do it on the third day.” At the start of the day, Saurashtra had kept their faint hopes alive by picking the last four TN wickets in quick time.
Brief scores: Saurashtra 183 & 122 in 75.4 overs (Cheteshwar Pujara 46; R Sai Kishore 4-27, Sandeep Warrier 3-18, S Ajith Ram 2-35). Tamil Nadu 338 in 119.4 overs (R Sai Kishore 60, Baba Indrajith 80, M Boopathi Vaishna Kumar 65; Chirag Jani 3-22). TN won by an innings & 33 runs.