Image Credit- PTI
Ajinkya Rahane and
Musheer Khan looked like they were in the middle of a detergent commercial,
their clothing caked with powder.
On the second day of the Ranji Trophy final, both batsmen had to dive to get on
base at separate times. They eventually ended up staining their shirts in the
process, which revealed their struggle.
They had to rely on quick singles and doubles throughout the first half of
their 107-run combination since they were having trouble scoring runs.
Actually, during their stand’s first 22 overs, they only managed 40 runs and
one boundary. However, they persisted in grinding out and had virtually
eliminated Vidarbha from the game by stumps.
Two hitters at
different stages of their careers: Musheer, who is playing his first-class game
just six games into his Under-19 World Cup, and Rahane, who has played 85 Tests
but is no longer in the national selectors’ plans.
Their forms contrasted just as much. Rahane had only amassed 134 runs this
season at an average of 13.40 going into the championship game. Though he might
have remained on the fringes of India’s Test team with a great showing, such
prospects gradually faded with each passing match.
Musheer, meanwhile, was the second-highest run-getter at the World Cup, with
360 runs at an average of 60.00 and a strike rate of 98.09. He carried that
form into the Ranji Trophy as well.
On Monday, though,
neither Rahane nor Musheer had an easy start. Harsh Dubey, a left-arm spinner,
was using the new ball to spin a web. He managed to get one to turn square and
pitch on leg stump, beating Musheer’s outside edge. Dubey cut the length to make
the batter look foolish when he attempted to use his feet.
When Rahane survived an LBW appeal against Umesh, he was on 1. When the
Hawk-Eye indicated that the ball had just clipped the top of the middle stump,
the on-field decision of not-out spared him.
Despite being repeatedly beaten by Umesh and Aditya Thakare’s outside edge,
both batters were able to hold on.
After tea, something
altered. Or maybe right before it, and the effect didn’t become apparent until
after the pause. The ball had to be replaced in the penultimate over before the
break because its seam had fallen off. It’s also possible that the two hitters
were ready to accelerate against an older ball because they had already spent
enough time in the middle by that point.
As soon as play started up again, Rahane produced a stunning on-drive to score
the team’s first boundary after Thakare pitched one complete round off. Rahane
hit a pulled four off Yash Thakur to get the partnership up to fifty in the
next over. The couple needed 140 balls, but only 76 balls would be needed for
the next fifty.
Due to the
quickness, Rahane needed just 88 balls to get his fifty. It was a tearful
celebration. For a time, he kept his head down and held the bat high while
Musheer gave him a pat on the back and an embrace.
In the final over of the day, Musheer mentioned reaching his half-century, and
his father motioned for him to stay in the stands and continue. Musheer
acknowledged with a gesture of his own.
At stumps, Sunil Gavaskar and Diana Edulji were among the small group of
spectators who gave Rahane and Musheer a standing ovation. What a khadoos
attempt, they must be saying, or maybe daag achhe hain [excellent stains].