In what is a remarkable turn-around, Andhra, who had conceded a 67-run first innings lead, came back into contention and kept their chances of a victory alive against defending champions Vidarbha on the penultimate day of their four-day Ranji Trophy Elite match in Anantapur on Saturday.
Chasing 259 for victory, Andhra ended the day on a positive note as they were 93 for one with Shaik Rasheed leading the charge. The right-handed bat was on an exact 50 and veteran KS Bharat was batting on 27. The duo have already added 78 for the unbroken second wicket with Rasheed scoring all his 50 runs off 65 balls and Bharat contributing 23 off 60 balls.
The task is still not over but Andhra will be happy that they are still in the frame of things and, maybe, holding a slight edge over their rivals. Andhra are still adrift by 166 runs but have nine wickets in hand. However, it will not take much time for things to change dramatically as witnessed on Saturday.
Bowlers do the trick for Andhra
Vidarbha started their second innings with a distinct advantage as they had a handy first innings lead. However, the Andhra bowlers had other ideas. K Saiteja bowled opener Aditya Thakare (10) with the score reading 10.
India bowler Nitish Kumar Reddy then struck two might blows off successive balls to set the cat among the birds. The medium pacer had Atharva Taide caught behind by Bharat for a duck and then off the next ball bowled newman Danish Malewar, who too did not trouble the scorers.
The three strikes without the addition of a run, unnerved Vidarbha but Aman Mokhade and Samarth R steadied the rocking boat with a 92-run partnership for the fourth wicket. But Andhra bowlers were not to be denied for too long. Mokhade (51; 65 balls, 6×4) was bowled by Saurabh Kumar.
Samarth perished a little later, bowled by Saiteja after making 47 (76 balls, 4×4). Vidarbha then hurtled towards disaster as they lost three wickets in a heap again, this time for the addition of two runs to the total. YV Rathod made 56 off 87 balls with seven fours and a six as Vidarbha were bundled out for 191.
Saiteja bagged four for 28, while Saurabh Kumar took two for 47 and Nitish bagged two for 29.
Rasheed and Bharat hold the key
With the likes of Karan Shinde, skipper Ricky Bhui, Nitish Kumar Reddy and KV Sasikanth yet to bat, Andhra should fancy their chances of pulling off a win. But much will depend on Rasheed and Bharat and how they negotiate the morning session.
SCOREBOARD
Vidarbha (1st innings): 295
Andhra (1st innings): 228
Vidarbha (2nd innings): Aditya Thakare b Saiteja 10, Atharva Taide c Bharat b Nitish Kumar 0, Aman Mokhade b Saurabh 51, Danish Malewar b Nitish Kumar 0, Ravikumar Samarth b Saiteja 47, Yash Rathod c Saurabh b Raju 56, Rohit Binkar lbw Saiteja 8, Harsh Dubey c Rasheed b Vijay 0, Darshan Nalkande c Vijay b Saiteja 0, Nachiket Bhute st Bharat b Saurabh 14, Parth Rekhade (not out) 0; Extras: (LB5) 5. Total: (All out in 55.2 overs) 191.
Fall of wickets: 1-10, 2-10, 3-10, 4-102, 5-128, 6-142, 7-143, 8-144, 9-174.
Bowling: Saurabh Kumar 11-0-47-2, Kalidindi Raju 10.2-1-39-1, Kavuri Saiteja 12-2-28-4, Nitish Kumar Reddy 8-1-29-2, KV Sasikanth 5-0-23-0, Tripurana Vijay 9-0-20-1.
Andhra (2nd innings): Abhishek Reddy c Mokhade b Bhute 11, KS Bharat (batting) 27, Shaik Rasheed (batting) 50; Extras: (LB4, W1) 5. Total: (For one wicket in 26 overs) 93.
Fall of wickets: 1-15.
Bowling: Darshan Nalkande 4-0-19-0, Nachiket Bhute 8-1-21-1, Aditya Thakare 4-0-15-0, Harsh Dubey 8-2-29-0, Parth Rekhade 2-0-5-0.
