Ranji Trophy: Pankaj & Co put Team Rajasthan in command

The surface at the SMS Stadium has become so docile that it was a tough ask for the bowlers to dismantle Jharkhand’s batting line-up.

Defying the conditions, Team Rajasthan skipper Pankaj Singh led his troops into the battle on day-3 in an exemplary fashion. The medium-pacer took four wickets with an economy of 2.0. Following his neat and scrupulous execution, pacer Aniket and the spin duo of TN Dhillon and Mahipal Lomror also judiciously exploited the swerving properties of the ball.

Intimidated by the bowling, batsmen Saurabh Tiwary (83), Ishan Kishan (50) and Kaushal Singh (42) showed good resistance and played some magnificent shots but their failure to convert good start into big scores cost them first innings lead.

Despite early breakthroughs, the bowlers did not run out of steam and remained disciplined till they wrapped up the visitors at a score of 265. At that time Jharkhand were trailing by 158 runs. Aniket, Dhillon and Lomror took two wickets apiece.

Commenting on the challenges of the pitch, captain Pankaj said, “Bowling on this wicket was tough as it is batsman-friendly. But we had to find out ways to ensure breakthrough come at regular intervals. So our mantra was simple, bowl in pairs and …read more