Pujara, Vasavada help Saurashtra take control

Their 142-run stand off 380 balls wore down the opposition who had a slight edge after reducing Saurashtra to 206 for five on the opening day.

Pujara (66 off 237), who was on five when he retired hurt on day one due to fever, and Vasavada (106 off 287) batted for two sessions and five overs as the host reached 384 for eight at the close of play.

On day two, the host managed 178 runs in 79.1 overs for the loss of three wickets.

Speedster Mukesh Kumar removed Pujara and Chirag Jani in the final session but by then the damage had already been done. Bengal took its first wicket of the day in the fifth over after tea with Wriddhiman Saha effecting a sharp stumping off Shahbaz Ahmed to send back Vasavada. Bengal coach Arun Lal had rated the pitch as “very poor” on Monday with the odd ball keeping low but its pace attack could not make much use of the conditions after Akash Deep struck thrice on day one.

Run scoring indeed was difficult but Pujara and Vasavada’s plans were crystal clear: tire the bowlers out and pounce on the loose balls. Their stay in the middle may not have been pleasing to the eye but proved to be very effective.

While it was a typical Pujara knock, full of patience, Vasavada, who is coached by the India batsman’s father Arvind Pujara, made a bigger contribution to the team’s cause with a back-to-back hundred and fourth of the season. Vasavada, who had made a match-winning knock against Gujarat in the semi-final, played with remarkable patience and composure. His innings comprised 11 fours. This was Vasavada’s eighth first-class hundred.

It was a commendable effort from Pujara too, considering that he had not been keeping well ever since his return from New Zealand last week. Such was the slow pace of the Pujara-Vasavada stand that the first boundary of the bat came in the 15th over of the day when Vasavada pulled Akash Deep.

Bengal, which had bowled 80.5 overs on day one, took the new ball after the 85th over but it did not lead to a breakthrough.

Vasavada brought his fifty with a four off off-spinner Arnab Nandi, driving him past mid-on. Pujara broke the shackles in the following over by stepping out to cover-drive left-arm spinner Ahmed. Soon after, the Test specialist survived an lbw appeal after Bengal went for the limited DRS. The closest Bengal came to getting a wicket in the afternoon session was when Vasavada straight-drove Mukesh, who claimed the ball kissed hishand before hitting the stumps with Pujara at the non-striker’s end. However, the appeal was turned down as there was no conclusive evidence.

Brief scores: Saurashtra 384/8 in160 overs (A Vasavada 106, A Barot 54,V Jadeja 54, C Pujara 66, Akash Deep 3/77) vs Bengal