Amandeep Khare came to bat on Saturday when his side were reduced to 42 for two and still needing 306 to make Hyderabad bat again. The Chhattisgarh skipper did more than that as he stood tall to deny Hyderabad a victory in their final engagement of the Ranji Trophy season at the Gymkhana in Hyderabad on Sunday.
By close of play on the final day, Chhattisgarh reached 411 for eight with Amandeep remaining unconquered on 176. It was a massive effort on the part of the skipper who faced 333 balls and struck 23 fours and two sixes.
At one stage, Chhattisgarh were down and out, and it looked as if Hyderabad were set for a big innings win. Spinners Tanay Thyagaraj and G Aniketh Reddy shared six wickets between them to reduce the visitors to 218 for eight.
At that point of the match, Chhattisgarh still needed 130 runs and had just two wickets in hand. It was a dire situation and anyone else would have just surrendered but Amandeep was made of sterner stuff. He shepherded No.10 bat Dev Aditya Singh and the duo defied the Hyderabad bowlers for a whopping 43.5 overs to salvage a draw for their side.
Aditya Singh deserves much praise for his fighting knock and ability to stay at the wicket under such trying situation. He batted for 95 balls and made an unbeaten 79 with 19 boundaries to prove that he was no bunny with the bat.
Amandeep and Aditya were involved in a 193-run partnership for the unbroken ninth wicket with Amandeep scoring 110 of those off 165 balls. The partnership was worth its weight in gold and ensured that Chhattisgarh remained ahead of Hyderabad on the points table.
Chhattisgarh had resumed the day with opener Anuj Tiwary on 47 and Amandeep Khare on 25. There was immense pressure on the duo, but they weathered the early storm well and kept dwindling the target down. They were involved in a 125-run partnership for the third wicket which came off 273 balls. Tiwary was the dominant partner as he contributed 71 off 133 balls to the partnership. Amandeep, who was content to play second fiddle, made 46 off 140 balls.
Left-arm spinner Anikethreddy found the much-needed breakthrough for the hosts when he had Tiwary caught by Abhirath Reddy after the batter had made 88. He faced 164 balls and struck 12 fours and a six.
That opened up the sluice gates as Anikethreddy and Thyagarajan created havoc in the Chhattisgarh middle-order. From 167 for two, they lost six wickets for 51 runs to stare down the barrel.
Thyagaran accounted for Vikalp Tiwari (10), P M Yadav (4) and Sahban Khan (0), while Anikethreddy added Mayank Verma (1) and A Sarvate (7) to his kitty.
Smelling victory, Hyderabad bowlers went on the aggression but, unfortunately, were up against Amandeep, who proved more formidable than the Great Wall of China.
Amandeep and Aditya stonewalled all the attempts of Hyderabad skipper Mohd Siraj and his bowlers. They not only took home a point for their valiant effort but also proved that they are no pushovers and can bat under any dire situation.
Hyderabad had to be content with three points for their effort. They finished the tournament with 16 points and took the fourth place. Chhattisgarh ended up third with 18 points. Mumbai with 33 points and J&K with 24 points progressed to the knock-out stage from Elite Group D.
SCOREBOARD
Chhattisgarh (1st innings): 283
Hyderabad (1st innings): 631
Chhattisgarh (2nd innings, overnight 100/2): Ayush Pandey c Pragnay b Rakshann 24, Anuj Tiwary c Abhirath Anikethreddy 88, Sanjeet Desai c Aman Rao b Siraj 0, Amandeep Khare (not out) 176, Vikalp Tiwari c Pragnay b Thyagajan 10, Mayank Verma c Rahul b Anikethreddy 1, PM Yadav lbw Thyagarajan 4, Sahban Khan c Rakshann b Thyagarajan 0, A Sarvate c Rahul b Anikethreddy 7, Dev Aditya Singh (not out) 79; Extras: (NB4, W2, B8, LB8) 22. Total: (For eight wickets in 122 overs) 411.
Fall of wickets: 1-41, 2-42, 3-167, 4-182, 5-191, 6-201, 7-201, 8-218.
Bowling: Mohd Siraj 19-4-62-1, Tanay Thyagarajan 42-8-114-3, G Anikethreddy 43-4-147-3, C Rakshann Readdi 11-3-33-1, Himateja K 3-0-20-0, B Punnaiah 2-0-7-0, Abhirath Reddy 1-0-3-0, Aman Rao 1-0-9-0.
