It seems there is no immediate solution to Kerala’s batting woes. The four changes, including handing over debuts to three youngsters, did little to arrest a familiar collapse as Kerala put up another underwhelming show with the bat and handed over the advantage to host Bihar in their Ranji Trophy cricket match at the Moin Ul Haq stadium here on Friday.
Forced to bat under overcast conditions after a delayed start of 90 minutes, Kerala’s top order crumbled against Bihar’s opening bowlers Veer Pratap Singh (3/26) and Vipul Krishna (2/57) before a rearguard century by Shreyas Gopal (113 batting) carried the visitor to 203 for nine at stumps.
The new opening pair of captain Rohan Kunnammal and debutant Anand Krishnan lasted just four overs when Vipul breached the former’s defence. The ball darted around, and the reliable Sachin Baby and Vishnu Vinod retreated early to the dressing room. Akshay Chandran, who replaced Rohan Prem, rode his luck early on, but Anand Krishnan fell to Veer for nine and Kerala wobbled at 34 for four at lunch.
