Captain Tambe gives DY Patil ‘B’ control

MUMBAI: There is something about veteran leg-spinners that make them good captains. Shane Warne was brilliant with the Rajasthan Royals, while Anil Kumble was pretty decent in his short stint with the Indian Test team too.
Right now, in the Times Shield, DY Patil Group 'B' are reaping the benefits of persisting with 39-year-old leggie Pravin Tambe as the skipper of their side.
They look set to clinch the coveted Times Shield Division ‘A’ crown, unless they blunder big time. After taking four wickets and scoring an unbeaten 69 in the semis against the Tata Sports Club, Tambe repeated his heroics in the final too.
On Day Two of the summit clash against Western Railways Sports Association at the MIG on Wednesday, he ensured that his team had one hand on the trophy.
He first scored an unbeaten 71 (135b, 9x4, 1x6) and then took three crucial wickets. Thanks to Tambe’s gutsy effort and the tail-enders, DY Patil Group 'B' pushed their overnight score of 278 for six to 410.
Tambe then unleashed his bag of tricks on the Western Railways 'B' batsmen, taking three for 53 to leave them in dire straits at 177 for seven.
Tambe removed Western Railways 'B' wicketkeeper Ehad Malik who had scored 178 in the semis and Dhiren Salvi with googlies, while a flipper that kept low captured the key wicket of Sanjay Bangar, who perished just before close for 28.
Unfortunately for Western Railway 'B', their best bet, the in-form big-hitting opener Asad Pathan fell after starting off in a whirlwind fashion, having smacked 23 (3x4, 1x6) off just 10 balls. Pathan was caught as he top-edged a hook off Kshemal Waingankar.
With the wicket aiding turn, Tambe, gave the ball a serious rip and made the batsmen uneasy. "I looked to bowl wicket-to-wicket and make them play all the time," said Tambe later. The DY Patil boys seem to revel in his leadership. "I am enjoying leading our side. We gell well. I know what each of my boys can do," he said.
Brief Scores: DY Patil Group 'B' 410 (Pravin Tambe 71*, Sarvesh Damle 60, Hardik Parmar 3-75) vs Western Railway Sports Association 'B' 177-7 (Shreyas Khanolkar 44, Pravin Tambe 3-53).