Kushagra’s unbeaten hundred propels Jharkhand against Delhi

Wicket-keeper batter puts on a show with his strokeplay; features in stands with skipper Virat and the lower-order to add to the woes of the hosts

In the past 12 months, Kumar Kushagra has had a share of the spotlight. In December 2023, he was picked by Delhi Capitals at the IPL auction for a hefty sum of ₹7.2 crore and went on to play a few games in this year’s 17th edition.

In January and February this year, he was part of the India-A squad that played four-day games against England Lions.

And a couple of months ago, he was part of the cream in domestic cricket that was picked for the Duleep Trophy.

Affirmation of the potential that astute observers see in the 20-year-old wicketkeeper-batter from Jharkhand was on view at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Thursday as he struck an unbeaten 133 off 166 balls to lift his team to 356 for nine at the end of day two of a Group-D Ranji Trophy contest against Delhi. The classy knock gave Kushagra his third First Class century.

This was Kushagra’s maiden Ranji game of the season owing to a stiff back following the Duleep Trophy in September. Coming in after the dismissal of Sharandeep Singh, who was only able to add two runs to his overnight score before nicking Simarjeet Singh to Anuj Rawat in the 11th over of the day, Kushagra didn’t take long to stamp his authority.

He was comfortable scoring runs off front and back foot, his drives, cuts and pulls making for an attractive wagon wheel.

While the biggest partnership of the day was his 93-run stand with skipper Virat Singh, who made 56, Kushagra also combined effectively with the lower-order to compound Delhi’s frustration.

“On day one, the wicket was a little helpful for the fast bowlers. So we thought that if we can delay playing our shots, it will benefit the team,” Kushagra told reporters.

“Sharandeep left the ball really well. When I went in, I felt we could play shots. It came off nicely. I thought I should take the initiative.”

The scores:

Jharkhand — 1st innings: Md Nazim c Himmat b Grewal 6, Sharandeep Singh c Rawat b Simarjeet 64, Aryaman Sen b Simarjeet 5, Utkarsh Singh c Dhull b Siddhant 46, Virat Singh c Rawat b Grewal 56, Kumar Kushagra (batting) 133, Anukul Roy c Mathur b Gusain 0, Supriyo Chakraborty b Mathur 16, Manishi c Siddhant b Mathur 14, Vikas Kumar c (sub) b Badoni 0, Shubham Kumar Singh (batting) 0; Extras (b-8, lb-2, w-3, nb-1): 14; Total (for nine wkts. in 125 overs): 356.

Fall of wickets: 1-24, 2-30, 3-123, 4-147, 5-240, 6-241, 7-275, 8-332, 9-356.

Delhi bowling: Siddhant 26-9-63-1, Simarjeet 25-12-43-2, Grewal 24-8-65-2, Shivam 16-3-53-0, Gusain 10-0-53-1, Badoni 11-4-17-1, Mathur 13-2-52-2.

Published - November 15, 2024 10:49 am IST