Ranji Trophy: All-rounder Gurinder Singh gifts Chandigarh 3 points

CHANDIGARH: All-rounder Gurinder Singh set up an excellent final day for Chandigarh with three top order scalps, but it was the sun playing hide and seek that helped Bihar avoid another humiliation despite losing six wickets in their Ranji Trophy Plate Group fixture at the Sector 16 Cricket Stadium here Friday.
Gurinder, who took six wickets in the first innings, fell one short of yet another 10-wicket haul but what made him more satisfied was his contribution towards Chandigarh earning those three points from the tie. On the other hand, Bihar opened their account this season with a solitary point.
“I would have loved another one to make it a 10-wicket haul, but nevertheless I am satisfied with my contribution for the team. Individual milestones are secondary in a team sport, and these three points will be crucial as the tournament progresses,” Gurinder told TOI, after the final day’s proceedings were once again cut short due to bad light.
The 27-year-old was expectedly adjudged the Man-of-the-match for his all-round contribution that included a valiant 67 to propel Chandigarh to a massive 420 in their first innings.
Having been forced to follow on after their first innings folded up for a meagre 115, Bihar resumed the final day at 4 for no loss and the opening duo of Kumar Nishant and Indrajit Kumar extended their partnership for 97 more runs to safely play out the opening session.
Gurinder brought the 101-run opening stand to a halt by trapping Indrajit plumb in front before the lunch interval and by that time Nishant had already reached 55 off 73 deliveries. Indrajit scored a patient 44 off 69 balls, laced with six hits to the fence.
Immediately after the break, the left-arm spinner then got the prized scalp of Nishant for a well-made 70 off 115 balls, comprising 12 boundaries before getting rid of Rathour for a duck.
Reeling at 127 for 3, the tourists needed some stability in their middle order and half centurion in the first essay, Babul Kumar came up with a resolute 21 off 66 balls along with Rahmat Ullah, who got an identical 21 not out that came off 102 deliveries. Spinner Raman Bishnoi then ended Babul’s stay before pacer Jaskarandeep Singh jolted the visitors with the quick scalps of wicketkeeper Vikash Ranjan (5) and captain Ashutosh Aman (3) that further reduced them to 175 for 6 before bad light once again interrupted play. The umpires walked to the crease a couple of times with their light meters but there was hardly any more chance of getting the players back in action, thanks to the poor light.
With 10 points in their kitty, Chandigarh will have an edge when they travel to Assam for their Round 3 tie against Meghalaya at Mangaldai. Meghalaya, who had a winning start to the tournament against Nagaland, however lost to Goa in their second tie.
But having played his previous Ranji season for the Northeastern side, Gurinder believes he knows the strengths and weaknesses of the opponents, something that could come in handy for his side.
“I played the last season for Meghalaya, so I am accustomed to their playing styles and most of the team members. They won’t be that easy to beat, especially in home conditions. But there are many positives we can take from our opening two matches, specially the way our batting and bowling clicked,” he said.
Analysing his side’s performance, Chandigarh head coach VRV Singh said the boys have performed brilliantly but there is always room for improvement.
“When you are playing at home, you know the conditions well. Our boys did exceedingly well in both the matches but there will be tougher outings when you are playing away. But these boys are professionals and I hope they can perform the same way in the away fixtures,” the coach said.
On the other hand, Bihar will have their task cut out when they take on Goa at home in their next outing. Captain Ashutosh Aman blamed his side’s poor batting for the disappointing results in the first two matches and wants his middle order batsmen to pull up their socks before the encounter.
“Our batting did not click in the previous match, here too our batting totally collapsed in the first innings. The Chandigarh bowling attack is the best we could face and the way our batsmen applied themselves in the second innings was commendable. We still have a lot to work on,” Ashutosh told TOI.
Scorecard
Chandigarh 1st innings: 420 all out in 116.5 overs
Bihar 1st innings: 115 all out in 49.3 overs
Bihar 2nd innings: (overnight 4/0)
Indrajit Kumar lbw Gurinder Singh 44, Kumar Nishant ct & b Gurinder Singh 70, Rathour ct Arslan Z Khan b Gurinder Singh 0, Babul Kumar b Raman Bishnoi 21, Rahmat Ullah not out 21, Vikash Ranjan b Jaskarandeep Singh 5, Ashutosh Aman b Jaskarandeep Singh 3, Vivek not out 0
Extras: 11 (nb 3, w 0, b 5, lb 3, pen 0)
Total: 175 for 6 wickets in 71 overs
Bowling: Shreshth Nirmohi 5-0-33-0, Anirudh Kanwar 10-4-14-0, Jaskarandeep Singh 9-3-27-2, Gurinder Singh 25-8-68-3, Bipul Sharma 20-8-20-0, Raman Bishnoi 2-0-5-1
Numbers Game:
4 | Gurinder Singh has received his fourth Man of the Match award in FC cricket - the first for Tripura vs Goa in 2016-17, followed by the next two for Meghalaya - one each against Manipur and Mizoram - both in the 2018-19 RT season
67 | Gurinder Singh has produced his second best all-round performance 9/92 in a FC match - a fifty and nine wickets (6/24 + 3/68). He had scored 99 and captured 11 wickets (5/15 + 6/41) against Mizoram at Shillong in December 2018
15 | Number of wickets at 12.66 runs apiece in two matches captured by Gurinder - the most by a Chandigarh bowler in the 2019-20.