Vijay Hazare Trophy: Patidar leaves TN on the brink

CHENNAI: Rajat Patidar's (158, 20x4, 4x6) blazing knock helped Madhya Pradesh beat Tamil Nadu by 8 wickets in their Group C Vijay Hazare Trophy clash at Pachaiyappa's College ground here on Friday. Tamil Nadu's third successive loss in the tournament has made it extremely difficult for them to qualify for the knockouts. Tamil Nadu's target of 303 proved no match for Patidar, whose 111-ball innings helped MP win with 24 balls to spare.
On a pitch, which was easy for batting, Patidar gave little time for the bowlers to settle down.The 24-year-old did have a challenge in the form of R Ashwin, but they had their plans in place. "Ashwin had begun bowling leg-spin to take the ball away from the batsmen. We decided to employ the sweep shot and it paid dividends," Patidar said. He first added 65 for the opening stand with Naman Ojha (39, 5x4, 1x6) before engaging in a 209-run partnership for the second wicket with Rameez Khan (78 n.o., 8x4) that tilted the game in their favour. By the time Patidar departed - caught by Kaushik Gandhi off Rahil Shah (1-47) - Madhya Pradesh were just 29 short of victory.
The only blemish in Patidar's innings was when, on 39, he was dropped by K Vignesh at mid-off. Tamil Nadu coach Hrishikesh Kanitkar felt his bowlers failed to execute their plans. "We were conceding boundaries right through the innings. The moment you do that - you fail to control the game and batsmen don't feel the pressure at all. Also, you can't defend a target just by bowling well. You have to take wickets and we failed to get them," Kanitkar rued.
The first half of the contest belonged to the hosts as they scored 302 for nine riding N Jagadeesan's 108-ball 99. Tamil Nadu's innings gathered impetus when Jagadeesan teamed up with B Aparajith (43, 4x4) - to add 107 runs in 120 deliveries - for the third wicket. Once Aparajith departed, bowled by Ankit Sharma (2-56), skipper Vijay Shankar (84, 7x4, 2x6) took centre-stage. Jagadeesan and Vijay Shankar added 65 for the fourth wicket as the hosts reached 195 in the 37th over. Jagadeesan's innings concluded when he was caught behind off Puneet Datey (2-54). B Anirudh's (39, 3x4, 1x6) 25-ball cameo and Vijay Shankar's 62-ball essay helped Tamil Nadu finish with a flourish.
During his innings, Vijay Shankar suffered back spasms and needed the physio's attention. He didn't take the field in the second half. Team sources said Vijay Shankar's fitness is being monitored and a call on his availability for the remaining two matches will be taken shortly.
Brief scores: Tamil Nadu 302-9 in 50 overs (N Jagadeesan 99, Vijay Shankar 84, B Anirudh Sitaram 39; Ankit 3-59, Ishwar Pandey 2-53). Madhya Pradesh 303-2 in 46 overs (Rajat Patidar 158, Rameez Khan 78 n.o.). Madhya Pradesh won by eight wickets