Sudip Gharami: "Playing the paddle sweep every now and then was part of my plan"

Sudip Gharami scored a magnificent 186 in the Ranji Trophy Quarter-finals to give Bengal a commanding position against Jharkhand. The 23-year old right-hand batter was backed by the Bengal team management even after a poor run in the first phase of the season. Sudip's inning was full of flair as he never looked getting out against prominent domestic bowlers like Shahbaz Nadeem and others.

Gharami had already scored his maiden first-class ton in the first day of the quarter-final. He was on his way to make it his maiden double ton of his first-class career. However, that did not went according to plan as he given out on 186 off Rahul Shukla. Although, it was seen in the replay that the ball had never touched his bat. But, Sudip had to return back to the dressing room with a disappointed face.

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"Well, you saw what happened. But this is part and parcel of the game. Sometimes the decisions will go my way as well. Obviously feeling disappointed but you can not do anything about that," Sudip said in an exclusive interview with Sportz Point.

"Yes, the 200 was back of my mind. But I wanted to play a longer inning. The communication in every break was that I have to bat longer as I was batting well," Sudip added.

Sudip Gharami did not had a great start to his first class career. But, he was prepared to repay the faith of the team management even before boarding the Bangalore flight. "It feels great to repay the faith as I had told you. But, I know I can do better and for longer period. The main thing is that, everyone in that team believes that I can do better things for Bengal. This is very special for me," Sudip expressed.

After coming back from U-25 tournament, East Bengal coach Pronab Nandi had changed some techniques of the young batter. And, those little things turned into gold for Sudip Gharami. "As a batter you know every simple basic thing matter. Tultul sir (Pronab Nandi) changed some of my basics which I applied during this match. I am feeling more confident on my technique now," Sudip added.

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During his inning of 186 runs, Sudip scored 105 runs against Anukul Roy and Shahbaz Nadeem combined. He had a definite plan of playing the sweep against those left-arm spinners to distract from their line and length.

"Yes, I had that in my mind. But as the wicket was a bit slower, I tried to play the paddle sweep more. I tried to play the shot finer. Playing the paddle sweep every now and then was part of my plan. I think I was successful in doing that," Sudip told.

Along with Sudip, another senior Bengal player Anustup Majumdar scored a century for Bengal. "Playing with players like Ruku da (Anustup Majumdar) and Manoj (Tiwary) da makes it easier for me. They keep guiding you every now and then, which is great. I am very happy that I was with Ruku da when he completed the hundred," Gharami added.

Bengal is now at 577/5 after Day 2, with Manoj Tiwary and Shahbaz Ahmed batting at the crease. They will look to bat as long as possible as a lead in the first inning will confirm their place in the semi-finals of Ranji Trophy 2021-22.

"Yes, the longer we bat the better it will be for us. We at first need to make sure we have the lead. Then if there are chances we will go for the kill. But, the longer we bat, the less the bowlers will have to bowl on this wicket, (which is still good to bat on). The plan would be to keep the bowlers fresh for the semis," Sudip Ghrami added.