Baby stands tall to fend off Gujarat on Day 1
It was an attritional opening day of the second semi-final between Kerala and Gujarat in Ahmedabad. At the close of play, skipper Sachin Baby (69*) ensured that the visitors were afloat in the game on a day where Gujarat's bowlers put on an extremely disciplined shift. Opting to bat, Kerala closed the day out at 209 for 4 from their 90 overs.
Baby along with Mohammed Azharuddeen (30*) put on an unbroken 50-run stand to ensure that Kerala didn't entirely let Gujarat dominate proceedings. The day started on a positive note for Kerala as the openers Akshay Chandran (30) and Rohan Kunnummal (30) put on a 60-run stand to get things going.
However, once that partnership was broken, Kerala's innings started to stagnate in terms of momentum. Varun Nayanar's innings didn't last that long either as he perished to Priyajitsinh Jadeja. Baby then combined with Jalaj Saxena for a 71-run stand to revive Kerala's fortunes.
But a lapse in concentration saw Saxena drag one onto the stumps off Arzan Nagwaswalla. Baby then combined with Azharuddeen to prevent further damage on a slow-moving day.
Brief scores: Kerala 206/4 (Sachin Baby 69*, Mohammed Azharuddeen 30*; Ravi Bishnoi 1-33) vs Gujarat
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