Delhi maintained their dominance against Mumbai at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on the third day of the Ranji Trophy competition, but it would take a special individual to make quick progress to win against such a formidable opponent. I needed performance.
Divij Mehra (5 for 29) showed off his bowling in a spectacular seam in Mumbai this morning, shaking up his orders at the top to bring Delhi closer to a surprise win. Mumbai need a great deal of effort to avoid a final day defeat.
Mumbai had to get off to a good start to close the gap on his 76 at the start – Pranch his Vijaylan hit some limits and the rest of Delhi his tail was his first of the day. It shook a little over time – and then built up a solid total. The pitch was expected to help spinners more than fast bowlers, so it was still everyone’s game. However, Mehra topped the top order by consistently hitting long enough bowling deliveries with the new balls. Some of these deliveries arrived after setup. Musheer Khan, Prithvi Shaw and Sarfaraz Khan all failed to cope with sharp movements and lost wicket. Sarfaraz, who scored a century in the first innings, fell in love with a golden duck. His off-stamp cartwheel.
Armaan Jafar, on the other hand, went down with a straightened delivery after the pitch. He could have been prepared to deal with the move, and could only point his racket at a straight ball. When Prasad Pawar shrugged and lost his stump, the writing on the wall read:
Mumbai he was down 37 for 5.
Captains Adinkharahane (51, 104b, 4×4), Shams Murani (30, 66b, 4×4) and Tanoush Kotian (48, 87b, 3×4, 1×6) had to attempt repairs. Rahane, as usual, played with caution and displayed impeccable defense. Nearly two of his thirds of the pitches he faced were scoreless, but his innings were pretty remarkable. Exuding a reassuring serenity in the crease, he played some glorious shots. His direct drive from Divisi just after lunch (18th over of the innings) was the shot of the day. It was a precise footwork, well-timed and long delivery.
After drinking tea, he may try to take a chance. He slashed Vijaylan to the border over the gorge, slicing one in pairs to the midgate, then to the point of a single, making him a half-century. The road to recovery was just beginning when Rahane fell and slipped in the next over. The kotian collected its tail and left its flanks above the water. It was another inning caution and an occasional heavy hitter. He hit the only six of the day and knocked down spinner Shokeen in the hour before tea. Previously, Mulani was also with Shokeen for a while until he was fired. Stump left Mumbai with the final pair at the crease after Tushar Deshpande pushed his Yogesh Sharma, who was a left-arm spinner, behind him and overtook Mohit Avasthi Mehra. For 20-year-old Mehra, it was his fifth wicket of the day. This was her memorable performance in her second first-class match.
Brief scores: Mumbai 293 and 168 for 9 (Rahane 51, Kotian 48, Mehra 5 for 29) leads Delhi 369 by 92 runs