Irani Cup 2023, Day 2 Review: Vidhwath Kaverappa, Saurabh Kumar rattle Saurashtra’s batting unit, Arpit Vasavada keeps Ranji Champions alive

Day 2 of the ongoing Irani Cup started with Saurashtra picking up the remaining two wickets of the Rest of India as the visiting team bundled out for 308 runs. Parth Bhut completed his five-for and with that, the Jaydev Unadkat-led side had the upper hand in the match but they couldn’t do much with that. In the second innings, Saurashtra kept losing wickets at regular intervals and it kept building pressure on the home team.

Vidhwath Kaverappa, who had a phenomenal season in domestic cricket, once again proved his class in the middle. The ace pacer rattled the top order picking the wickets of both the openers, Harvik Desai and Chirag Jani. Following this, Samarth Vyas and Cheteshwar Pujara tried to build a strong partnership but Pulkit Narang broke that and brought the Rest of India back into the game. Saurabh Kumar after which picked up two wickets and with that, Saurashtra looked to be in deep trouble.

Later on, Arpit Vasavada played a mature knock and hit a half-century but others couldn’t assist him well in the middle. Prerak Mankad and Parth Bhut contributed well but they failed to build a partnership which is a massive issue. Towards the fag end of the day, Saurabh picked up the wicket of Vasavada and with that, the problem only intensified for the home team.

Notably, Saurashtra posted 212/9 at the end of Day 2. They are currently trailing by 96 runs and hence, need something spectacular to turn the table in their favour. The aim will be to build an important partnership but that looks very unlikely at the moment.

Hence, the bowlers will have to step up on Day 3 and bundle the Rest of India to a relatively low total for them to chase it down. As of now, the Hanuma Vihari-led side are one step away from getting the job done and lifting the iconic Irani Cup.