The Ranji Trophy match between Hyderabad and Punjab ended in a draw on Thursday. Punjab declared at 240 for six, taking three points from the fixture. Hyderabad got one point after the game ran out of steam. Punjab captain Uday explained, "They had a good reading of our bowlers."
Punjab batted out required time on the fourth day and as it declared on 240 for six, both teams settled for a draw, with the visitor taking three points from the fixture.
Unlike a dum-sealed biryani, slow-cooking to perfection, this Ranji Trophy contest between Hyderabad and Punjab at the Gymkhana simmered for nearly four whole days and never quite served up a result.
After adding 183 runs and losing six wickets on Thursday, Punjab declared at 240 for six, with handshakes following shortly after. The home side was left with one point and plenty of 'what ifs' while the visitor walked away with three.
Harnoor Pannu was the first to depart on the final day. After ten overs of dots and singles, a determined Prabhsimran Singh broke free against Ruthik Yadav in the 35th over, flaying a six and two fours.
At the other end, Vihaan Malhotra shifted gears briefly, reaching his half-century with a six and a four, before C.V. Milind broke through his defence. Unfazed, Prabhsimran raced to his fifty off 63 balls, before a mistimed reverse sweep ended his enterprising knock.
Jashanpreet Singh and Salil Arora fell on either side of lunch, and Enamjot Chahal followed a few overs later, but by then the contest had run out of steam. Once Uday Saharan completed his half-century, Punjab declared with a 291-run lead, and the sides settled on a draw.
Tipping points
Two passages of play decided the contest, and both swung Punjab's way. On day two, with the visitor wobbling at 315 for nine, Salil and Umesh Yadav defied Hyderabad with a 116-run stand - the former contributing 78 - to lift Punjab to 431. The other was an out-of-syllabus Vihaan special where he snared four wickets in six overs to help bowl out the home side for 380.
"They had a good reading of our bowlers and we thought of doing something different. Vihaan bowls a little slower. We were expecting him to bowl with some turn but he bowled straight and got wickets. We didn't expect that," Punjab captain Uday explained.
"In the last wicket partnership, they got crucial runs. And when Vihaan came, we did not assess him correctly," his counterpart Milind admitted.
Hyderabad now turns its attention to a home game against Chhattisgarh, while Punjab hosts Andhra.