Hyderabad Seamers Shine Amidst Rain-Hit Stalemate Against Pondicherry

On a crisp Monday morning, Pondicherry’s batsmen collapsed under the pressure of Hyderabad’s bowling attack during the Ranji Trophy Group-D match. After the third day’s play, interrupted by rain, Pondicherry found themselves trailing by 343 runs in their first innings, with just two wickets remaining.

Despite the CAP Ground 2 pitch favoring spinners, as evidenced by the opposition securing nine wickets, Hyderabad’s seamers B. Punnaiah and Chama Milind turned the tide, claiming three wickets for a mere five runs in the opening hour. Ganga Sridhar Raju, the opener, was caught at cover off Punnaiah, followed by Mohit Kale falling lbw to an in-swinger, although he insinuated a possible edge.

Resuming overnight, Anand Singh Bais and left-hander Akash Kargave adopted a defensive strategy but faced a nerve-wracking moment when Kargave called Bais back mid-pitch, sparking taunts from the fielders suggesting a lack of intent to play.

In the subsequent over, Kargave was bowled by left-arm seamer Milind, leaving Pondicherry at a precarious 35 for four. Hyderabad’s skipper Rahul Singh, sensing a swift conclusion, opted to bring in nine fielders within the imaginary 30-yard circle.

Although Bais and Siddhaant Addhatrao were each given a lifeline in Milind’s over, Rahul couldn’t conceal his frustration, casting his cap aside. As Bais and Addhatrao began to challenge the spinners, a disastrous misunderstanding led both batters to the striker’s end, resulting in Addhatrao’s disappointed departure from the field.

This run-out triggered another collapse, with Tanay Thyagarajan and G. Anikethreddy claiming three more wickets for just three runs, before the weather intervened with rain just before lunch.