There was a sense of déjà vu here at Arun Jaitley Stadium on the second morning of the Ranji Trophy competition between Delhi and Mumbai. Despite several spectators witnessing his bowling with great swings, fast bowlers emerged and top batters struggled.
However, Hrithik Shokeen was a nuisance for the Mumbai side and an interesting late-session play saw him short 45 (60b, 9×4) in the conditions before he was caught on the ball.
Even though the pitch passed the outer edge multiple times, the hitters appeared to collectively decide to play the bat and not lower the shutter. Dhruv Shorey, in the first over he set the tone with a four-foot clip and some sweet drive from his Mohit Avasthi, but could not cope with a sharp inswinger from the same bowler and was off-stamped. lost. Nitish Rana also picked up speed quickly, hitting cuts and flicks to collect boundaries, but bounced back quickly. However, Shokei is soaked with pressure. He was a stand-in during his brief affiliation with Shawley, but soon began playing shots that were just as compelling as the more skilled and experienced Shawley. This was his fourth top-flight match, but he appeared to be playing on a different surface than the other hitters, passing additional cover from left-handed sailor Royston Diaz in the 11th round. His ride was picture perfect, full of precision and balance. And just three overs later, he made a bold move, skipping the stretch and sliding down to Abasti. Perhaps he was thinking on his feet, as it was an attempt to deny that bowling was gaining momentum.
He also used uppercuts well against Diaz. Mumbai’s signs were ominous and nothing seemed to bother him.He had been bowling for quite some time since the beginning of the day when Deshpande came around the wicket and dug it a bit. Shokeen treated Deshpande with contempt, playing an uppercut at limit and then a hard pull shot at four. He tried to draw the ball again, but was cornered behind. It was a tame dismissal to his innings and finished what was likely to blossom into a valuable ton. The rest of the day revolved around the surly Parry and Nudge. The short ball trap was rebuilt later in the day, but it didn’t work.
Vaibhav Rawal defeated his Deshpande by 101 points, but this was after he hit three straight fours. But it wasn’t the ball.
Here’s what captain Himat Singh had to say about Shoukeen’s innings.
“He played a very valuable inning. In third place he filled our spot and has done consistently well. He plays his part well. We don’t need to explain him much. It’s his first year. As he matures, he also learns to vary his starts. he can hit “
Rawal also praised him:
“Shokeen has also excelled with our racquet in the last few games. He has a counter-oriented playstyle and his contribution helps us a lot as it makes things easier for us. It’s a great sign that he’s doing so well in his first season. i wish him well. We hope he will contribute to the team on a regular basis.”