A breakthrough season,for Sudhindra & MP

Ranji Trophy: Medium-Pacer has topped the wicket-takers list

While the escalation from the Plate to the Elite Group was always expected to be a tough one,this had been a reality-check of horrendous proportions at the very onset.

Humbled for 63 in their opening essay in the Ranji season during a mammoth loss to Baroda,Madhya Pradesh (MP) were in strife again in their second outing with Bengal having piled on 496 at the Jadavpur University Complex ground in Kolkata.

One member in the MP camp,however,walked off the field quietly satisfied,having realised a longstanding dream. Dismissing Sourav Ganguly might not have been too significant in the overall context of the match. But for Taduri Prakash Chandra Sudhindra,it was a big deal.

For good measure,Sudhindra knocked Gangulys stumps back in the second innings too. I didnt want people to dismiss it off as a fluke, he explains now.

More importantly,by the time Sudhindra pocketed his man for the second occasion,the MP batsmen,led by Naman Ojha,had heroically earned his team the crucial first innings lead. The match proved a turning point for both the fast bowler from Bhilai and his team. And both have only grown in stature drastically ever since with Sudhindra leading the way in the overall wickets column with 34,and MP having already qualified for the quarterfinals with a league match against Tamil Nadu to spare.

In a way,Sudhindra and his team found themselves at similar crossroads coming into the 2011-12 Ranji season. MP had languished in the bottom pile for four seasons. Thrice they came within a match of being promoted,but fell at the final hurdle in the Plate semi-finals. And now having fought tooth-and-nail to get back into the mix,they had to prove that they were indeed worthy of being here.

Just like Sudhindra,they have succeeded in their quest.

Rajasthan ran away with the glory last season by going onto lift the Ranji title,overshadowing MPs return to the Elite Group. But while the defending champions have been reduced to also-rans this season,MP have been the surprise team of the season. They have posted two outright wins,against top-tier regulars Delhi and Gujarat,and presently sit pretty at No.2 in Group B,just a point shy of their next opponents – Tamil Nadu.

No professionals

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And that too we have achieved this without a single professional player in the mix unlike Rajasthan. We have focussed on developing our homegrown talent. Our academy has been flourishing,and the results are extremely pleasing, says Sanjay Jagdale,who along with being the secretary of the BCCI has been a administrator from MP.

And the home-grown talent has indeed been integral to their remarkable resurgence this season. If Sudhindra has led the way with the ball,Ojha has been sensational with the bat,and as ever skipper Devendra Bundela has led from the front.

The Baroda game was a big turning point. But we also thought of it as having put our worst performance behind us, says skipper Bundela. We gambled with a green-top against Gujarat and it worked. I enjoyed my century against Delhi the most,because it helped us overcome a tough opponent, adds Ojha.