Sai Kishore flags lack of application from lower order in Ranji Trophy opener against Rajasthan

FILE PHOTO: TN skipper Sai Kishore picked three for 50 in the second innings against Rajasthan. | Photo Credit: BISWARANJAN ROUT

Tamil Nadu skipper Sai Kishore attributed his team’s failure to take a first-innings lead against Rajasthan in its Ranji Trophy opener here to the lower order’s lack of application.

He also felt the pitch became increasingly spin-friendly as the match progressed, giving the toss (won by Rajasthan) a significant bearing on the contest.

“I think it was a lack of application. We lost our last four wickets for very few runs (10), and the lower order has to contribute in First Class cricket. When we bowled, there was hardly any assistance from the pitch and it played more like a seaming wicket. But as the game progressed, it started offering more to the spinners, making it a toss-oriented wicket. Still, we should have contributed more with the bat,” he said.

Sai Kishore credited Mahipal Lomror (84) and Kartik Sharma (42) with steering Rajasthan to safety in the second innings.

“To be fair, Mahipal played really well. He counter-attacked us really well from a very difficult situation (25 for three). Even Kartik, for that matter (came in at 31 for four). He might not have scored a lot of runs, but made enough impact for them to secure those three points,” he said.

Coach Yo Mahesh highlighted the positives. “We would have loved to take the first-innings lead, but there are a lot of positives. Playing away from home, the toss is critical. Deepesh (three for 89) and Saravana Kumar (three for 68) took three wickets each, Sai Kishore did well with the ball in the second innings (three for 50), and three of our batters did well (Andre Siddarth, Jagadeesan, and Pradosh Ranjan Paul),” he said.