• Source:JND
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Aditya Sarwate’s unbeaten 66 guided Kerala to 131/3 at stumps on the second day of the Ranji Trophy final, as the visitors responded to Vidarbha’s first-innings total of 379. With a deficit of 248 runs still to be covered, Kerala showed resilience with both bat and ball to keep the contest finely balanced.

Vidarbha had started the day in a commanding position at 254/4, eyeing a total around 450. However, Kerala’s disciplined bowling attack ensured the hosts fell short of that target. Danish Malewar’s career-best 153 and Karun Nair’s solid 86 were the highlights of Vidarbha’s innings, but Kerala’s bowlers struck at crucial moments to prevent further damage.

Seamers MD Nidheesh (3/61), Eden Apple Tom (3/102), and NM Basil (2/60) worked in tandem to break partnerships and wrap up the innings efficiently. Basil delivered a crucial breakthrough early in the day, sneaking one through Malewar’s defense to dismiss him for a well-compiled 153 off 285 balls, an innings that included 15 boundaries and three sixes.

In reply, Kerala’s batting unit had to navigate some testing spells from Vidarbha’s bowlers. Aditya Sarwate stood firm, playing a composed knock of 66* to stabilize the innings. His resilience ensured that Kerala remained in the hunt, though they still have a long road ahead to close the deficit.

With three days left in the final, Kerala will be looking to build on Sarwate’s innings and push towards a strong first-innings total. Meanwhile, Vidarbha will aim to strike early on Day 3 to regain control of the match.

But perhaps the biggest breakthroughs of the day came for Kerala when Eden had Vidarbha's red-hot form batter Yash Rathod caught in the slips for a mere three.

Without much pace on the delivery, Eden got the ball to straighten up enough to catch the shoulder of the bat which landed in the hands of the fielder at the first slip.

Vidarbha skipper Akshay Wadkar's (23) resistance did not last long when his charge against Eden's delivery outside off, took an edge and keeper Mohammed Azharuddeen did the rest.

To their credit, Vidarbha's tail consisting Akshay Karnewar (12), Harsh Dubey (12 not out) and Nachiket Bhute (32) did well to drag them as far as 379.

It was imperative for Vidarbha to strike with the new ball and Darshan Nalkande (2/22) provided two early wickets, cleaning up both the Kerala openers Akshay Chandran (14) and Rohan Kunnummal (0) to reduce Kerala to a precarious 14/2.

But Sarwate, who was once a vital cog in Vidarbha's line-up and was a member of their two-time title winning campaigns in 2017-18 and 2018-19, stood against his former side to lead a strong reply for Kerala.

The 35-year-old Sarwate, who had switched from Vidarbha to Kerala after the last Ranji Trophy season, battled hard to reach 66 not out from 120 balls with 10 fours and remained stoic even as there were challenges along the way.

Sarwate also had luck on his side when Vidarbha did not opt for a caught-behind appeal from skipper Wadkar in the 25th over. The replays showed the ball had brushed Sarwate's gloves.

The left-handed Sarwate put on 93 for the third wicket with Ahammed Imran (37 off 83 balls, 3x4s), who too had a reprieve early on when he was batting on nine.

Bhute's delivery, angling across the left-handed Imran surprised the batter with some bounce as it took the edge and flew towards the first slip. But substitute fielder Atharva Taide, at second slip, went for the catch and spilled it.

If Vidarbha were left to rue their mistakes, they did not fail in breaking the partnership when Yash Thakur (1/45) dismissed Imran late in the day.

Having seen the batter mishit a pull shot, Thakur got another substitute fielder Aman Mokhade at midwicket and lured Imran to play it again. The batter obliged, with another mishit, which resulted in the third success of the innings for Vidarbha.

Brief scores:

Vidarbha 379 in 123.1 overs (Danish Malewar 153, Karun Nair 86; MD Nidheesh 3/61, Eden Apple Tom 3/101, NM Basil 2/60) lead Kerala 131/3 in 39 overs (Aditya Sarwate 66*, Ahammed Imran 37; Darshan Nalkande 2/22) by 248 runs.