The corridor of uncertainty became Hyderabad’s Achilles heel, most of its batsmen all at sea against an accurate Jammu and Kashmir pace attack in their Ranji Trophy Group C match at the Rajiv Gandhi international stadium here on Sunday. Shouldering arms rarely in the first innings, they fiddled frequently outside the off, either falling prey to the slips or hearing the fatal rattle of timber behind them.
The host had seen hope in the patches of green on the pitch and chose to field first. It was the touring side that capitalised on the conditions though, bundling out the host for 280 and forcing it to follow on about an hour and a half after lunch on the third day. When stumps were drawn, Hyderabad had hobbled to 122 for two.
In striking contrast to their counterparts, J & K’s disciplined pacemen bowled to their fields and targeted the woodwork most of the time. Testimony to the latter trait was the way they clean bowled half the home side’s batsmen in the most convincing manner of dismissal.
Hyderabad’s tale of woe resumed just as the crucial first hour was drawing to a close. Caught in two minds, whether to offer a stroke or let go, when going forward to an Umar Nazir delivery on the rise, Akshath Reddy snicked to stand-in stumper Ian Dev Chauhan.
His overnight partner Tanmay Agarwal had apparently sized up the visiting side attack but one moment of complacence cost him dearly. The southpaw dabbed at a ball from Zahoor Sofi that was leaving him and paid the price, Ian Dev having only to get his gloves together.
Terribly tentative against the pacemen, Ahmed Quadri turned around to see only his middle stump standing off one lethal blow from Umar, which left one stick broken. Kolla Sumanth seemed in control until he was a tad slow to react. Rohit Sharma, off his second delivery with the new ball, sent Sumanth’s off-stump cartwheeling.
Stranded hopelessly at one end was B. Anirudh. Left the last man standing, the straight-driving southpaw (68, 8x4, 1x6) steadily ran out of partners, even as he logged his highest score and third 50 this season. C.V. Milind could have stayed around but holed out to mid-off Mithun Manhas off Zahoor Sofi. In the same over and off his fifth and last deliveries, Zahoor cleaned up the tail, splaying the stumps of Anwar Ahmed Khan and Sudeep Tyagi.
The scores: Jammu & Kashmir — 1st innings: 460.
Hyderabad — 1st innings: Tanmay Agarwal c Chauhan b Zahoor 71, Danny Derek Prince lbw b Rohit 1, G.H. Vihari b Rohit 35, Akshath Reddy c Chauhan b Umar 35, B. Anirudh not out 68, S.A. Quadri b Umar 0, Kolla Sumanth b Rohit 34, Mehdi Hasan c Parvez b Rohit 0, C.V. Milind c Mithun b Zahoor 24, Anwar Ahmed Khan b Zahoor 0, Sudeep Tyagi b Zahoor 0; Extras (b-4, lb-3, nb-4, w-1): 12; Total (in 92 overs): 280.
Fall of wickets: 1-6, 2-82, 3-148, 4-154, 5-165, 6-237, 7-237, 8-280, 9-280.
J & K bowling: Ram Dayal 19-7-37-0, Rohit Sharma 25-5-78-4, Umar Nazir 19-1-59-2, Zahoor Sofi 13-4-37-4, Parvez Rasool 13-0-50-0, Bandeep Singh 3-0-12-0.
Hyderabad — 2nd innings: Tanmay c Bandeep b Ram Dayal 3, Akshath c Chauhan b Rohit 4, Hanuma Vihari (batting) 46, Danny Derek Prince (batting) 56; Extras (b-7, lb-6): 13; Total (for two wkts. in 39 overs): 122.
Fall of wickets: 1-13, 2-13.
J & K bowling: Rohit 8-2-26-1, Dayal 9-4-15-1, Nazir 7-1-15-0, Zahoor 5-0-23-0, Rasool 7-2-15-0, Manhas 3-0-15-0.