Sreeram Rahul once again came to Andhra’s rescue with a fighting half-century to help the hosts reach 231 against Chhattisgarh on the first day of their Group B match at the DVR ground in Mulapadu, Vijayawada, on Monday.
At stumps, Chhattisgarh were 35 for one with opener Ayush Pandey being run out by KV Sasikanth for 13 off 18 balls with three fours. Skipper Anuj Tiwary was batting on 11 off 36 balls with two fours and Mayank Verma was on 7 off 30 balls with a four. The visitors weathered the initial attack without conceding any wicket to the bowlers and would be keen on putting up a good show with the bat on the morrow.
Andhra, who had suffered a 267-run loss against Hyderabad in their previous game, did not seem to have recovered from the thrashing. The top order batters dished out another pathetic performance before Rahul and the tail salvaged their pride.
Electing to bat after skipper Ricky Bhui won the toss, Andhra lost opener M Hemanth Reddy (2) off the seventh ball of the match. He was caught by Jadeja off Dev Aditya Singh with Andhra having just five on the board.
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However, Abhishek Reddy and Shaik Rasheed repaired the damage to some extent with a 32-run partnership before Chhattisgarh struck again. Ajay Mandal had Abhishek Reddy (23; 21 balls, 4×4) stumped by wicketkeeper Pradhan to set the hosts back again.
Karan Shinde (7) too did not last long as he was caught by Yadav off Dharmendrasinh Jadeja and soon Rasheed too made his exit. He was caught by Tiwary off Jayant Yadav for 24 (58 balls; 4×4) and Andhra were reduced to 64 for four.
Rahul salvages Andhra’s pride
Skipper Bhui and Rahul then joined forces to take the score past the 100-run mark. But the revival was short-lived as Bhui (23; 37 balls, 2×4, 1×6) was stumped by Pradhan off Jadeja and Andhra had lost half their team for just 105 on the board. Bhui and Rahul added 41 off 71 balls with Bhui contributing 18 off 33 balls and Rahul getting 23 off 88 balls.
To make matters worse, wicketkeeper Revanth Reddy (2) fell to Mandal and the hosts were in dire straits at 114 for six.
However, Chhattisgarh’s attempts to run through the side failed as Rahul framed the bowling well and with support from the lower-order batters, he rowed the Andhra boat to the shores.
Rahul and all-rounder KV Sasikanth put up the best partnership of the innings. They added 61 off 126 balls for the seventh wicket with Sasikanth contributing 31 off 69 balls and Rahul making 28 off 57 balls. Chhattisgarh struck when Yadav had Sasikanth caught by Vikalp Tiwari to end the blossoming partnership. Sasikanth struck a four and a six in his knock.
Saurabh Kumar (5) was caught behind by Pradhan off Yadav but Rahul found another good ally in Tripurana Vijay. They added 40 for the ninth wicket to take the score past the 200-run mark. Vijay, who made 20 off 33 balls with a four and a six, was bowled by Mandal and Rahul was the last man to fall. He was caught by Jadeja off Yadav after making a valiant 89 off 173 balls with seven fours and a six.
Andhra ended up with 231 on the board off 73.2 overs. Considering the start they got, Andhra would be more than happy with what they got on the board. It remains to be seen how the bowlers respond on the second day’s play.
Off-spinner Jayant Yadav was the most successful bowler for Chhattisgarh as he took four for 75 and left-arm spinner Ajay Mandal bagged three for 56.
Brief scores: Andhra 231 in 73.2 overs (Sreeram Rahul 89, KV Sasikanth 31, Shaik Rasheed 24, Ricky Bhui 23, Tripurana Vijay 20; Jayant Yadav 4/75, Ajay Mandal 3/56, Dharmendrasinh Jadeja 2/66) vs Chhattisgarh 35 for one in 14 overs.
