Ranji Trophy | Warrier and Mohammed’s partnership with the bat helps TN take a slender lead

Tamil Nadu's M. Mohammed & Sandeep Warrier take 9 wickets & combine for 116-run stand to help TN take 14-run lead.

On the opening day of the 2023-24 Ranji Trophy season, M. Mohammed and Sandeep Warrier combined to take nine wickets between them to help Tamil Nadu restrict Gujarat to 236 in the first innings.

On day two, it was left to the duo to bail out TN with the bat as well as from a precarious situation of 119 for eight. Their sensational 116-run stand for the ninth wicket helped the visitor eventually take a 14-run lead at the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel Stadium on Saturday.

Mohammed - who scalped a five-for on Friday - led the way with a scintillating 85 (99b, 11x4, 4x6), filled with powerful strikes down the ground and some eye-catching drives through the off-side. At the other end, Warrier (38) easily got behind the line of the ball against the quicks and looked untroubled.

Mohammed took the bowlers on when peppered with the bouncers with clean pull shots that sailed over the leg-side fence. He then went after medium-pacer Ripal Patel, lofting him down the ground and collecting two fours and as many sixes, the last of which landed beyond the stadium roof and got him to his half-century in style. From there on, the duo played sensibly to get within two runs of taking the lead before Mohammed was dismissed.

In the first session, the TN top order was found wanting against the Gujarat pacers to be reduced to 18 for four, with batters getting caught behind poking outside the off-stump tentatively.

Left-arm seamer Arzan Nagwaswalla was particularly impressive, taking three of the first five wickets before leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi scalped four, including that off a well-set Vijay Shankar, bowled through the gate off a googly.

Later in the evening, Warrier shone with the ball again, taking three wickets in his first two overs as the host finished the day on 38 for three, 24 runs ahead, with the match evenly poised at the halfway stage.