JOIN USShreyas Gopal speaks with the bat again!
Shreyas Gopal went from being the poor man’s Anil Kumble with his sharp, flat leg-spin to adopting the 'flight is must' narrative of old. Somewhere in between, he lost his length, subsequently his confidence.
Even as Shreyas continues to search for himself as a bowler, Shreyas, the batter, is making a case for his continued inclusion in the Karnataka side.
At a time when his presence in the playing XI was beginning to seem redundant - the ‘bowling all-rounder’ has bowled only 48 overs in six innings so far, Shreyas came up with a well-scripted 95 after coming in at No. 6.
His 165-ball stay yielded 13 fours, and also guided Karnataka to 380 for 8 from 118 overs against Rajasthan on the second day of their Group C Ranji Trophy tie at Alur on Wednesday.
Karnataka’s response, which was built on the ruins of Rajasthan’s 129 all out, put them 251 runs ahead with two days to go.
After skipper Mayank Agarwal missed out on yet another opportunity, dismissed meekly for 52, the likes of Nikin Jose (39) and Sharath Srinivas (42) made their presence felt with their cameos.
That said, the spotlight remained firmly on Shreyas for the duration of his stay. In part because Manish Pandey missed a big chunk of the day’s play after being hit on his thumb by Arafat Khan in the 47th over.
Pandey, who was dropped on 10 in the slip cordon, wasn’t his nonchalant best early on. He looked tentative and that played a part in him gauging the short ball late. He played forward, instead of back, and only managed to counter the rise by getting on his toes.
He couldn’t, however, avoid the ball and that led to a blow so painful he hopped a few times immediately after impact. Pandey came off the field in the 47th over, and it would be another 44 overs before he came out to bat. He made Rajasthan’s bowlers look amateur en route an unbeaten 75.
In the interim, Shreyas owned the stage.
Shreyas’ form with the bat, among other things, came under scrutiny after he failed in the three games. In fact, it was revealed that he was dropped - not rested due to a niggle - for Karnataka’s game against Goa.
Shubhang Hedge took on the role and did a decent job, but Shreyas returned against Chhattisgarh and persisted with for this contest. He seems to have justified his presence with this knock, and it was a good one too.
He rarely played away from his body and came up with a range of shots which would make a top-order batter proud. In fact, Shreyas, who has four first-class centuries, looked destined for a century way even before he got to his half-century.
But he made the grave mistake of chasing a wide delivery from Aniket Choudhary and guiding it into the hands of Yash Kothari at first slip.
Shreyas will know he missed out on a chance, but he will also know he has bought himself some time. The real question is: how long will Karnataka play a bowling all-rounder who rarely bowls?