Madhya Pradesh defended a low total of 214 runs, defeating Kerala by 48 runs in the Vijay Hazare Trophy in Ahmedabad, just like they had denied the southern side a sure win in the Ranji Trophy last month in Indore.

Madhya Pradesh defended a low total of 214 runs, defeating Kerala by 48 runs in the Vijay Hazare Trophy in Ahmedabad, just like they had denied the southern side a sure win in the Ranji Trophy last month in Indore.

Madhya Pradesh defended a low total of 214 runs, defeating Kerala by 48 runs in the Vijay Hazare Trophy in Ahmedabad, just like they had denied the southern side a sure win in the Ranji Trophy last month in Indore.

Madhya Pradesh have taught Kerala a lesson in perseverance, not once but twice this season. First, they denied Kerala a sure win in the Ranji Trophy in November, and today, MP successfully defended a modest total of 214 runs in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, defeating Kerala by 48 runs.

N M Sharafuddeen was the only Kerala batter who gave a scare to the MP bowlers with his fearless approach. The big all-rounder smashed three sixes and five boundaries, making 42 off 29 before miscuing a Tripuresh Singh slow ball to get caught at backward point, ending Kerala's resistance at 167.

Kerala were 118/9 when Vignesh Puthur joined Sharafuddeen. Rohan S Kunnummal's side had lost four wickets in 22 deliveries to be left with the last pair. The duo added 49, the highest partnership from Kerala.

It was MP's spinners who made scoring difficult for Kerala, with eight wickets shared between four of them. Shubham Sharma bagged 3/16 from 5, while Saransh Jain and Shivang Kumar claimed two apiece.

ADVERTISEMENT

Kerala spinners too had been effective on the day, with Ankit Sharma and Baba Aparajith shining on a slow, gripping surface, reducing MP for 214.

Left-arm spinner Sharma, who served MP cricket for many years before joining Kerala as a guest player this season, claimed 4/38 against his former side. Aparajith, another guest player from Tamil Nadu, bagged 3/36.

ADVERTISEMENT

MP would have folded meekly had it not been for a brilliant effort from wicketkeeper batter Himanshu Mantri, who made 93. The left-hander rescued the MP innings from 78/5 with valuable partnerships, the best of which was a 66-run stand for the ninth wicket with Tripuresh (37).

Mantri was unlucky to miss out on his second List-A century, just like in the previous match against Tamil Nadu, where he was dismissed for 90. Mantri tried to fetch a boundary from a short ball from Edhen Apple Tom, but ended up giving a catch to Salman Nizar. Vignesh Puthur went wicketless (0/56 from 8).

ADVERTISEMENT
Prefer an ad-lite experience? Consider Premium

In mid-November, MP's ninth-wicket pair of Aryan Pandey and Kumar Kartikeya survived 119 balls to earn them a draw on the fourth and final day of a Ranji match in Indore.

Kerala lost their last match to Karnataka after starting the event with a solid 145-run win over Tripura. Though Sanju Samson is part of the squad, has been unavailable due to national team commitments.

Brief scores: MP 214 in 46.1 overs (Himanshu Mantri 93, Tripuresh Singh 37, Ankit Sharma 4/38, Baba Aparajith 3/36) bt Kerala 167 in 40.1 overs (Sharafuddeen NM 42, Salman Nizar 30, Shubham Sharma 3/16, Saransh Jain 2/17, Shivang Kumar 2/42)

TAGS