When Delhi arrived to bowl after lunch on Day 2 of their Ranji Trophy fixture against Himchal Pradesh, the 430-run total and fifties for six of the top seven of their batting order would have instilled plenty of confidence.
At close of play with Himachal’s top order looking steady and patient, leaving them at 165/3 despite a late dropoff, the home side may be regretting losing their last six wickets for just 124 runs in the opening session here on Sunday.
Key to the visitors’ minor fightback and show of strength at the Feroz Shah Kotla grounds was a succesful homecoming for their unheralded opener Sidhant Purohit. The Delhi boy, brought up in the age group system in Himachal, scored a measured 165-ball 70 which acted as the fulcrum of his side’s effort on Sunday; one that inspired some hope of potentially saving this match.
“Until my wicket, we were in a very strong position,” Purohit told reporters. “There is full confidence that we can continue like this tomorrow.”
At 27, Purohit, in his debut Ranji season, is a late bloomer. He grew up near Gurugram and still trains at the Vinay Marg complex in the capital, but had to grind it out and wait plenty of years for a chance at first-class cricket away from home in the hills. The big score came as a reprieve after a nightmare debut, scoring a duck against Puducherry in the campaign opener last week. Purohit knows the value of proving his worth quickly in hyper-competitive environments.
“For the last two years, I have been waiting for a chance, didn’t get into the team. I wasn’t frustrated but I felt that I should make it, so now I need to make the most of being here,” he said.
And the 27-year-old showed an appetite for playing the longest format on Sunday, even if it came with the asterisk of facing a Delhi bowling lineup that lacked sufficient bite to make breakthroughs in these batting friendly conditions.
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The six wickets that fell in the first session was more of an outcome of Delhi’s batters going for their shots with a big total on the board and their tail failing to wag. In an 86-run opening stand alongside his skipper Ankush Bains, which lasted almost the entirety of the second session, Purohit proved that with patience, runs are on offer on this track.
“We planned to play like this. We had time, it’s only the second day, so we wanted to make sure we don’t play false shots and go long,” Purohit said.
Purohit would finally lose his wicket during an excellent late spurt from Delhi stalwart Navdeep Saini. The fast bowler generated movement to find a thick edge from Ankit Kalsi, caught by a diving catch from Sanat Sangwan at gully, a few overs prior. This time, he nailed his line and length to castle Purohit’s off-stump.
Some late wickets, a 265-run lead, and expectations of the wicket to break apart and aid the spinners more as the Test wears on, have kept Delhi upbeat after toiling in the field for much of Sunday. But there was plenty of evidence in Purohit’s innings to suggest that the home side can take the opposition for granted only at their own peril.
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‘Only IPL performers play for India’: Saini
His late burst claiming two wickets was impressive, and Delhi pacer Navdeep Saini still harbours belief that he can make an India comeback, after representing the country in 2 Tests and 19 white-ball games. The problem for him, however, is that he no longer plays in the IPL, which is according to him, now the main medium of judgement in Indian cricket across all formats.
Performances elsewhere, like the two wickets he found during a brilliant late burst in his spell of nine overs on Day 2 of Delhi’s Ranji trophy fixture against Himachal Pradesh on Sunday, matter far less, he stresses.
“The reality is that, now, only those players play for India who perform in the IPL. This the truth,” the 32-year-old fast bowler told reporters at the Feroz Shah Kotla ground. “So it was a big loss for me to miss out last year.”
Saini last featured in the IPL for the Rajasthan Royals back in 2023, and he failed to earn a contract in the competition this year.
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Brief scores: Delhi 430 all out in 116 overs (Sangwan 79, Doseja 75; V Arora 4/78) lead Himachal Pradesh 165/3 in 55 overs (Purohit 70, Bains 43; N Saini 2/20) by 265 runs.
