Ranji Trophy: Railways platform for Delhi boys

A similar narrative has played out at the Karnail Singh Stadium against Madhya Pradesh. On Day 1, Sangwan’s six wickets broke the back of the visitors, dismissing them for a paltry 124. In reply, Railways were under some pressure at 105/4, with a fiery Avesh Khan threatening to topple them over. However, a common-sense approach from Mor and Tyagi helped them forge a 73-run sixth-wicket alliance that not only neutralised the threat posed by Khan, but also helped Railways post 244 and garner a 120-run first-innings lead.

Harsh Tyagi.

Neither player reached a half-century. Mor departed for 45, while Tyagi looked composed before being trapped by pacer Kuldeep Sen moments after the tea interval for 36. In an otherwise dour day’s cricket, it was their resourceful batsmanship that stood out. At stumps on the second day, Madhya Pradesh were precariously placed at 47/2, still 73 runs adrift.

Growing up, Daniel Vettori was one of Tyagi’s idols. He had two sensational seasons for Delhi in the Cooch Behar Trophy — 2016 and 2017 — when he took 94 wickets from 14 matches. During a match against Jharkhand in 2017, Tyagi finished with scarcely-believable figures of 7/7. At that stage, he looked poised to make the big leap into Delhi’s Ranji Trophy squad. But the competition was intense, and Delhi already had a host of left-arm spinners such as Manan Sharma and Vikas Mishra in their ranks. The youngster took the opening that Railways provided. Two years later, Tyagi is not complaining. He is playing first-class cricket and also has a stable job.

In the interim, he did miss out on India’s 2018 U-19 World Cup squad that triumphed in New Zealand under Prithvi Shaw. But whenever an opportunity with the Indian junior team came along, Tyagi did not disappoint. His 14 scalps from four games proved to be instrumental in the colts’ winning the Youth Asia Cup in Bangladesh in October 2018.

It was this consistency in performances that helped him make his first-class debut for Railways last season. But things have not been so easy for the 19-year-old in 2019-20. The ample grass cover on pitches and the presence of three in-form pacers meant Tyagi would be relegated to ferrying drinks in the first four matches. But when he finally got an opportunity at home, he came to the fore with the bat. Tyagi displayed astute game sense, showcased a rock solid defence, and also unfurled two effortless sixes.

Mor has quickly earned the tag of his team’s crisis manager. He had a stunning initiation into first-class cricket, slamming scores of an unbeaten 91 and 102 on debut against Uttar Pradesh in Meerut. The wicketkeeper-batsman has struggled since then, accruing scores of 0, 2, 9, 26 and 7* in the next three matches. But when the chips were down on Sunday, Mor displayed maturity and application.

The word ‘transition’ is often used with regard to the Railways team. A few seniors have been shown the door and there has been a complete overhaul of personnel. A new coaching staff and a bevy of relatively fresh and unknown faces, most of them rejects from their respective state associations, have made their mark. The journeys of Sangwan, Tyagi and More are suitable examples. Maybe, Delhi’s loss is Railways gain.

Brief Scores: Madhya Pradesh 124 (Himanshu Sangwan 6/33) and 47/2 (Pradeep Poojar 1/6) trail Railways 244 (Dinesh Mor 45, Harsh Tyagi 36; Avesh Khan 2/28) by 73 runs.