The contest ended on a farcical note with part-timers bowling and easy runs on offer. There was hardly any intensity on view with Mumbai having ensured a place in the final.
Yet, this being the semifinal of the Ranji Trophy, one would have liked more effort from Mumbai in its bid for an outright win. After lunch, its bowlers appeared to be going through the motions.
Pursuing a mammoth 571 for a win, Madhya Pradesh was 361 for five when the teams decided to shake hands and settle for a draw on the fifth day at the DRIEMS ground on Wednesday.
Mumbai, through to the summit clash on first innings lead, will take on Saurashtra for the title in Pune from February 24.
Mumbai skipper Aditya Tare was adjudged Man-of-the-match for his crucial knocks of 68 and 109.
There was some cheer for Madhya Pradesh on the final day with wicketkeeper-batsman Naman Ojha (113, 185b, 13x4, 1x6) and the left-handed Harpreet Singh (105, 189b, 11x4, 1x6) getting past the three-figure mark.
Some of Ojha’s cover drives were majestic. Swing bowler Balwinder Singh Sandhu was first driven and then lofted over covers for boundaries. Ojha also cut with panache.
Harpreet has a tendency to play away from his body but is a good striker of the ball once in. He smoked paceman Badre Alam through the off-side field and carted left-arm spinner Iqbal Abdulla over long-on for the maximum.
The duo added 159 in 269 balls for the fourth wicket before Ojha fell nicking Suryakumar Yadav’s occasional off-spin down leg-side.
Mumbai made a push for win in the morning when its pacemen were on.
Opener Aditya Shrivatsava (68, 148b, 10x4), reprieved by ’keeper Tare off Abhishek Nayar, was caught behind off an Alam away seamer. As the afternoon arrived, Mumbai took its foot off the pedal.
This phase of play also showed the weakest aspect of this Mumbai team — its spin bowling. The sole specialist spinner in the side, Abdulla, was nothing more than ordinary — bowling without spin, flight or imagination.
Ineffective spinMumbai’s spin bowling stock is pretty thin at the moment with its primary left-arm spinner Vishal Dabholkar’s confidence down after his action came under the scanner. And the off-spinning options appear limited.
Leggie Pravin Tambe, arguably, is the best spinner in Mumbai now and he is 44.
The pitch slowed down as the match progressed. And with the sun beating down relentlessly, the grass on the wicket seemed increasingly worn out.
While a green and fresh wicket encouraged pacemen on the first three days, subsequently, the dead grass on the surface actually helped the batsmen by preventing the pitch from breaking up.
After the game, Tare said, “We first put up the runs on a green pitch, and then the pacemen took wickets when it mattered to get us the lead. It was a team effort.”
Madhya Pradesh coach Harvinder Singh Sodhi said, “It was a good experience for the boys since the team was in the semifinal after a long time.
“They will also realise that if they had done a certain things better, which they are capable of, they could have beaten this Mumbai team.”
The scores:
Mumbai — 1st innings: 371.
Madhya Pradesh — 1st innings: 227.
Mumbai — 2nd innings: 426.
Madhya Pradesh — 2nd innings: Aditya Shrivatsava c Tare b Alam 68, Jalaj Saxena run out 25, Rajat Patidar c Tare b Thakur 4, Naman Ojha c Tare b Suryakumar Yadav 113, Harpreet Singh c Herwadkar b Thakkar 105, Ankit Dane (not out) 23, Jagdeep Baweja (not out) 8; Extras (nb-2, w-9, b-2, lb-2): 15; Total (for five wkts. in 109 overs): 361.
Fall of wickets: 1-59, 2-75, 3-146, 4-305, 5-346.
Mumbai bowling: Thakur 19-7-46-1, Sandhu 19-1-62-0, Alam 13-2-54-1, Nayar 15-3-34-0, Abdulla 21-1-73-0, Herwadkar 10-0-33-0, Lad 5-0-32-0, Suryakumar 5-1-20-1, Thakkar 2-0-3-1.
Man-of-the-match: Aditya Tare.
Match drawn, Mumbai enters final on first innings lead
