Ongole: Kerala batsmen's poor run of form continued as they were bowled out for 162 on the opening day of their Ranji Trophy Elite Group A match against Andhra here on Monday. In reply, Andhra were 57/1 at stumps.
Debutant medium-pacer Mohammad Rafi picked up 5/62, while left-arm medium-pacer Prithvi Raj scalped 3/37 and K V Sasikanth chipped in with 2/38 as the Kerala innings ended in 49.5 overs.
Kerala, who were put in to bat by Andhra, lost wickets at regular intervals and were 103/7 at one stage. A fighting 42 by No. 8 Basil Thampi lifted them to the modest total of 162.
Basil, who missed the last game against Rajasthan with an injury, added 28 for the eighth wicket along with Abhishek Mohan (8). He put on a further 25 for the ninth wicket in the company of M D Nidheesh (11).
Basil, who hit four fours and a six in his 53-ball knock, was the last man to be dismissed.
Rohan Prem (19), Jalaj Saxena (18), Robin Uthappa (17), Sachin Baby (15), Salman Nizar (12), P Rahul (7) and Vishnu Vinod (6) all fell cheaply.
Kerala have lost four of their six games and are in 16th place in the 18-team Group A and B, while unbeaten Andhra are leading the pack with 21 points from five matches. Saxena had replaced Sachin as Kerala captain after the drubbing at the hands of Rajasthan inside two days.
Brief scores: Kerala 162 in 49.5 overs (Basil Thampi 42; Mohammad Rafi 5/62, Prithvi Raj 3/37) vs Andhra 57/1 in 27 overs.
