Biyas Muhammed writes on the prospects of the Research Scholars’ team for the forthcoming Prem Ranjan Memorial Cricket Tournament.

Ph.D SCHOLARS: STRONG FAVOURITES TO CLINCH THE TROPHY AGAIN

Captain: Nishant

The Scholars need 2 more runs in the final over to win the Prem Ranjan Memorial Cricket Tournament for the first time. The HS14 Captain Santhosh has the ball and Ranjit is batting. Ranjit manages to get the bat on the ball, runs a single and to everyone’s surprise, calls for the second. Ranjit sprints to get back to the batsmen’s end and does it easily. There is an easy runout chance at the other end. But, Biyas misses a simple direct hit, Manoj completes the run and Scholars create history. Though the final went to the last over, Scholars had been in a strong position throughout the match and played the best cricket in the tournament. As another Prem Ranjan Tournament approaches, they start as strong favourites.

LAST YEAR’S STORY: KNOCKED OUT IN GROUP STAGE

Even before the tournament begun, there were talks about the scholars’ team becoming a strong contender for the trophy. The fact that they had players like Nishant, Ranjit, Jithin, and Shahid who are also active in the Schroeter cricket scene added to the hype. With a thumping victory against the weak HS12, the scholars announced that they are a force to reckon with. Restricting HS12 to a meagre 51 in 8 overs, Scholars chased down the target in just 3 overs without losing a wicket. It was the beginning of a trend which turned out to be very rewarding for the scholars throughout the tournament: A highly disciplined bowling performance making use of many bowling options and an opening batting partnership which can score heavily without taking too many risks.

Scholars’ second match with HS13 was relevant in that they were taking on the two-time finalists to decide who tops the group. A fantastic opening stand from Ratheef and Anil put the scholars in a strong position after the first innings, setting a target of 103 to chase. Scholars maintained a low run rate for their opponents throughout the chase. Wickets of Sannihit and Dilip by Shabna and Anil put an end to HS13’s chase leading to a comfortable victory of 32 runs.

Fielding against HS16 in the Semi Final, the scholars got into a spot of bother for the first time in the competition. Athul and Sai gave a good start to the innings with Athul scoring heavily off Ranjith, perhaps the team’s most trusted bowler. But, like all good teams, another player, Jithin, stood up to the task and managed to get Athul caught behind. After Athul’s fall, the scholars’ bowling attack took control over the match and was set a target of 87 in 10 overs. Similar to their group match against HS12, the scholars chased down the target in 6.1 overs without losing a wicket.

In the final against HS14, Scholars’ bowlers were on the top again, Ranjith being the pick of the bowlers with figures of 3 overs, 16 runs and 3 wickets. They kept taking wickets at regular intervals and kept the run rate under control throughout the innings. A target of 112 in 12 overs was below par and a comfortable chase was expected.In reply, though Radeef failed to score at a brisk rate, he didn’t throw away his wicket and also supported Anil who was pacing the chase well. After the first half of their innings, runs started to dry. They lost all of their top three batsmen. A turn around seemed a possibility, but a good cameo by Jithin and finishing touches by Ranjith ensured that they clinch the title.

THE TEAM

That their opening batsmen put up a partnership of more than 50 in every single match they played speaks volumes of their biggest X-factor in their batting department. Nishanth, the captain of the team, comes in after the first wicket. Their middle order was hardly tested in the Prem Ranjan Tournament. In the recent Challenger Trophy Match, however, the top order failed to fire. With almost 15 overs to play and more than 200 runs to get, their middle order did a good job despite losing the match. Contributions from Ranjith and Pravin ensured that they crossed the 200 run mark. In the larger frame of things, the match was an indication that there is indeed much more to this batting lineup than the top order.

It is Manoj who takes the new ball for the scholars, followed by Ranjith and Shabna. What follows is a pool of fast and fast-medium bowlers who are thrown the ball by the captain at different stages of the innings. The range of bowling options ensures that an off day to even one or two of its premier bowlers will not affect their bowling too much. Their tournament economy rate of 8.4 per over shows how difficult it is to score off them.

A part of the credit for maintaining a low economy rate should also go to their fielding. Unlike most teams in the competition, there aren’t easy runs to be taken anywhere in the field. Nishant, also the wicketkeeper of the team, does a good job collecting the ball as well as keeping the spirit of the team intact.

PLAYER TO WATCH OUT FOR

There is nothing Ranjith can’t do on a cricket field (He even keeps the wicket when Nishant is bowling) and is certain to make an impact in the game one way or the other. Similar to what Ravindra Jadeja does, after completing the delivery, he quickly goes back to his run-up to bowl the next delivery. His overs, therefore, get over in quick time and the batsmen have little time to figure out what needs to be done. Ranjith showed his talent as a batsman in the Challenger trophy cricket, scoring a well made 57 off 25 balls. He is also among the team’s best fielders and generally fields at Long off or Mid on. On top of all these skills, his ability to maintain a cool head under pressure seems to be his biggest asset in high-intensity limited overs cricket.