Ranji Trophy, Day 2: Twin centuries from Lad, Akash, Shardul’s three wickets have Pondicherry teetering on precipice
Siddhesh Lad continued his dream run in the Ranji Trophy, with a career-best 170 (285b, 19×4, 4×6) as Mumbai rode on twin centuries by him and Akash Anand to put up a mammoth 630 for 5, before Shardul Thakur claimed three quick wickets to reduce Pondicherry to 43 for 4.
On a lifeless Wankhede Stadium surface, each of the five Pondicherry bowlers conceded more than a hundred runs as Lad and Anand (107 not out, 122b, 8×4) looked at ease and forged a 110-run partnership for the fifth wicket before reaching their personal milestones.
Lad picked up from where he left off in the Himachal Pradesh game, during which he had scored 127. On Monday, he added 160 runs for the fourth wicket with Sarfaraz Khan, who brought up his first fifty of the season. After a string of low scores, Sarfaraz found his mojo and celebrated his 16th First-Class half-century by taking off his helmet and raising the bat towards the dressing room before being caught behind off Aman Khan.
However, with a calm and composed Lad around, there were no further dents as he backed his natural game and unfurled some crisp drives through cover. As his father and coach Dinesh Lad watched the proceedings, the seasoned batter looked set to score his maiden double century, but Sabhay Chadha broke the momentum as Lad sliced to Anand Bais at deep-third man.
Shardul added to Pondicherry’s woes, scoring his first fifty of the season and building a long partnership with Akash before retiring hurt. However, Akash ensured Mumbai breached the 600-run mark before Shardul jolted Pondicherry with two quick wickets in his opening over.
Evidently tired after fielding for more than five sessions, the Pondicherry batters failed to show resilience as Shardul and Tushar Deshpande dominated to put Mumbai on top.
Published on Nov 17, 2025