Ranji Trophy: Mandeep, Uday take Punjab to safety
It was the last over of the day and as Railways off-spinner Hitesh Kadam trudged towards his bowling run-up, Mandeep Singh walked towards his batting partner Uday Kaul. Mandeep was batting on 96 and with just one over left in the day, Uday advised Mandeep to stay patient and wait for the next day to complete his century.
But Mandeep had other ideas. The second delivery he faced was a quicker one and Mandeep guided it towards the third man boundary to reach his ninth first class hundred. Point made, Mandeep once again walked towards Uday and after successfully negotiating the last over, they walked off the field together, having made sure hosts Punjab were in a relative safe position after losing their first two wickets for 57 runs. At the end of the day, Punjab were 235 for 2 with Mandeep on 100 and Uday on 92.
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However, the day did not start according to plan. While Uday held his ground after the departure of Manan Vohra, who was run out from a direct hit, Jiwanjot Singh, Punjab’s highest run-getter last season, fell after having taken time to settle down. That’s when Mandeep, who recently led India A to victory in the T20 match against South Africa, walked in. As Railways’ Karn Sharma looked to exploit the slowness of the surface, Mandeep bid his time, making just 10 runs before lunch. But once the day progressed, Mandeep opened up, hitting Kadam and K Upadhayay for boundaries and picked up a couple more in Arnab Nandi’s over to complete his half-century.
“I told myself that my first aim is 25 runs, even if it takes 50-75 balls. And once I am settled in, then I will play my shots. When I walked in to bat, I asked Uday to keep reminding me of this,” Mandeep said.
The last session saw Mandeep pressing on the accelerator and the Jalandhar batsman completed his ninth hundred with Kaul too nearing his century. It was a phase which saw Mandeep playing Karn, Nandi and Ranjeet Mali with ease and getting past Kaul’s score. Kaul, who struggled last season with a back injury, played the perfect foil to Mandeep, who completed his hundred off 192 balls and hit 14 boundaries.
“Recently I had a chat with Virat Kohli and then AB de Villiers on how to build the innings. As youngsters, we think that for international cricket we have to change our game. But AB told me to concentrate. He was of the view that whatever match I play, my focus should be to stay on the wicket,” said Mandeep.
Brief scores: Punjab 235/2 in 90 Overs (Mandeep Singh 100*, Uday Kaul 92*) vs Railways.
