In elite company,MP prove a point

Udit Birla shepherds the tail as hosts register a two-wicket victory against group leaders Delhi

Delhi coach Sanjeev Sharma had advised Udit Birla,the former India Under-19 batsman,to move from Maharasthra to Madhya Pradesh in order to get more opportunities to play. Sharma was the chairman of the junior national selection committee when he asked Birla to shift loyalties. Within a year Birla was leading MPs Under-22 side.

On Friday,Sharma watched with mixed emotions as Birla,with an unbeaten 49,guided Madhya Pradesh to a tense two-wicket win against Delhi in this Group B match played at the Emerald High School ground. At the start of the final day,Madhya Pradesh needed 59 runs with five wickets in hand to win the game. Delhi had taken a two-run lead in the first innings,yet Madhya Pradesh fought back with a century from Naman Ojha,who benefited from three dropped catches.

Birla batting overnight on 26 started off by hitting three boundaries. But what was impressive was the effort he put in to protect the tail.

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Delhi medium-pacer Parwinder Awana bowled his heart out and picked up three wickets to give his team an outside chance of pulling off a win. Awana registered his second five-wicket haul before limping out with MP on the verge of victory. Ishwar Pandey hit Rajat Bhatia for a boundary to seal five points for MP after 97 minutes of a tension-filled chase on Friday morning.

Left to rue their missed chances and poor bowling on Thursday,Delhi got off to a good start when they dismissed out-of-form Harpreet Singh in the fourth over of the final day. Delhi conceded three boundaries in a space of four deliveries just before the first drinks break and the MP looked favourite to seal this contest. Delhis season has been rather topsy-turvy. They had topped the group at the end of the last round but this loss has pegged them back again. MP skipper Devendra Bundela is not complaining.

We have had a period of five years which was a bad time for us,but now we have a good team and have experience. I just told the team that change cannot happen unless you want it to change,and unless you imagine yourself making a change. As a rule,we have banished any negative comments in the dressing room. Even when he lose or get out early,we speak only positively. It has helped because today we have chased 300 in the fourth innings to win a game, says Bundela.

There are similarities between Rajasthans campaign last season and MPs this year. What makes it more interesting is the fact that both Rajasthan and MP graduated to the Elite division only last season. In Bundela,MP have a leader like Rajasthans Hrishikesh Kanitkar who has seen several ups and downs in his career. In Mohnish Mishra and Naman Ojha they have a heavy top-order capable of piling the runs like Aakash Chopra and RR Parida did last year. And Birlas attacking game is similar to that of Ashok Meneria.

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Brief scores: Delhi 158 & 297 lost to MP 156 & 300/8 (N Ojha 107,D Bundela 68,U Birla 49; P Awana 5/93,R Bhatia 3/48)

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