Opening the innings, Mayank Agarwal scored a sparkling 161 off 218 balls to put India Blue in a commanding position on the first day of the Duleep Trophy match against India Green. The stylish opener entertained with some breathtaking drives as he helped his team post 336 for the loss of three wickets.
Involved in a 212-run opening stand with Gautam Gambhir followed by a 103-run partnership with Cheteshwar Pujara, Agarwal dominated the Ashoke Dinda-led attack for the better part of the day. He reiterated that playing alongside the experienced campaigner, Gambhir helped in negotiating the opposition bowlers and post a century. He had earlier said that the captain’s inputs had helped his previous knock (92 against India Red) as well.
“He was again very helpful. He plays spin very well. Once or twice when I faltered and didn’t read the ball, he was there guiding me through it. He just kept saying to bat through long durations and pick the right balls to hit.
“He is a senior player and has played a lot of Tests for India. There are times when he guides me. Like I have said before, he had told me not to follow the ball when it is moving. Even today he told how to play the spinners - don’t just offer the bat, watch and play. I also had a chat with him yesterday (the day before the match) during the nets about playing spinners and slower variety of bowling. Definitely his inputs came in handy,” Agarwal elaborated.
Speaking about his partnership with Pujara, Agarwal said, “It was good batting with him. We just kept saying that we have we need to capitalise on the good start. And that try and follow one big partnership with another big partnership. Keep batting as long as you can.”
Asked about missing out on a possible double-century, the opener said, “There are always things to be disappointed about, but I am quite happy with the way I am batting. I thought am batting well. Definitely did miss out on the big score.
“I was trying to hit it in front of square but it went behind square. Had it been a four it would have been a different story. It was a false shot. (However), I would like to think positively about the knock,” he said. While he played a sparkling knock he was lbw off a Jasprit Bumrah delivery but survived as it was a no-ball. Speaking about the instance he said, “When you get the chance you have to capitalise.”
Discussing his style of batting and role, the stroke-maker said, “I am not going to cut down on strokes, just pick the better balls to hit the shots. If it is a loose ball, then it is a loose ball (and you have to score off it). As much as I want to play a long innings, there are different ways of doing it - either you can cut down your strokes or pick the better balls.
“Initially when I start, I take a lot of time then I make up. I try and be judicious about the strokes. When the ball is in my area I do capitalise. As an opening bat, I have to be selective also knowing (that) I need to understand my game and see, if the ball is in my strong area then I should put enough pressure on the bowler. he should also know that if he bowls here I will score.”
While speaking about the wicket, which saw much more deterioration of the pink ball than in the last two matches, Agarwal said, “The wicket was little more rough. It was turning little more than what it did in the previous game also maybe because there was no rain but I still felt that it was a decent wicket to bat on. The ball was coming on quite nicely on to the bat in the evening under the light,” he mentioned while talking about the conditions.
