Of more coldwave and Kanitkar's fifty

By Vijay Lokapally

MOHALI, JAN. 12. Heaters, pull-overs and woolen gloves were in greater demand for the second day running at the Punjab Cricket Association (PCA) Stadium here on Friday. Play was at the mercy of the weather again and just 46 overs of play was possible in the Duleep Trophy league encounter here, with North reducing West to 174 for five.

``Freezing cold'' was all that the players uttered as winds drove everyone indoors and a thick cloud cover delayed the start of play even if there was no fog today. The daunting playing conditions had the effect on the West batsmen as they succumbed to lazy strokes, unable to move their feet, and paid the price for long spells of inaction.

The in-form Hrishikesh Kanitkar was not consistent this afternoon and was repeatedly tested by the hard-working Jammu and Kashmir left-arm seamer Surinder Singh Bagal, who was once again the pick of the bowlers. Of course, the enthusiastic Reetinder Singh Sodhi struck a nagging line and length but it was Surinder who looked most likely of making a dent in the opposition camp with his excellent seam movement.

After resuming at 67 for one, West progressed cautiously before Wasim Jaffer, in discomfort most of his stay, nicked Delhi left- arm seamer Ashish Nehra, who produced a better line than Thursday. An agile Akash Chopra made the catch look easy at second slip as Nehra broke the 60-run partnership.

Kanitkar, meanwhile settled, batted sensibly and dug himself in with the aim of playing a long innings. He was the only West batsman to have come to terms with the opposition. The Maharashtra left-hander concentrated hard against an attack which was much improved, with the ball being pitched up regularly. He did get his opportunities to belt the ball, twice playing the cut with lot of grace but looking clumsy on two other occasions when he executed the pull and failed to connect properly.

Kanitkar did well by not curbing his shots but he lacked support. He dominated the third-wicket partnership with Jacob Martin, adding 55 runs, but lost his partner at a crucial stage. Martin, who was all through tested by Sodhi, succumbed to the Sardar when he groped and missed the ball. It was a wicket which Sodhi deserved after having repeatedly got the edges which unfortunately did not carry to the waiting hands.

Kanitkar lost his concentration at the fall of Martin and followed soon when Surinder, in a short and impressive spell which saw him work up good pace, got one to kick and kiss the edge. The resultant catch was taken smartly at second slip by Chopra and Kanitkar, having faced 145 balls and hit ten fours, returned a disappointed man. His stay had promised much more.

North earned one more scalp when Abhijit Kale nicked an away- swinger, and finished the day on a satisfying note with Nayan Mongia and Niraj Patel holding the fort for West, the former looking very compact in his defence.

The scores:

West - 1st innings: Wasim Jaffer c Akash Chopra b Nehra 39, Connor Williams lbw b Surinder 21, Hrishikesh Kanitkar c Akash Chopra b Surinder 61, Jacob Martin lbw b Sodhi 17, Abhijit Kale c Dharmani b Nehra 6, Niraj Patel (batting) 11, Nayan Mongia (batting) 1, Extras (b-1, lb-7, nb-10) 18, Total (for five wkts in 76 overs) 174.

Fall of wicket: 1-40, 2-100, 3-155, 4- 155, 5-170.

North bowling: Ashish Nehra 15-1-51-2, Gagandeep Singh 17-6-34-0, Surinder Singh Bagal 20-6-41-2, Reetinder Singh Sodhi 19-10-26-1, Sarandeep Singh 5-0-14-0.

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