Kuldeep had just pierced the defenses of Kerala’s most experienced batter, Rohan Prem, and was taunting Sachin Baby with his cunning when Vishnu Vinod strolled in.
The host experienced an all-too-familiar top-order collapse just after lunch on the second day of the Kerala-Uttar Pradesh Ranji Trophy match at the SD College field, and was tottering at 32 for three. Kuldeep Yadav and Saurabh Kumar of Uttar Pradesh were bowling in perfect rhythm and giving Kerala hitters nightmares. When Vishnu Vinod strolled in, Kuldeep had just pierced the defenses of Kerala’s most experienced batter, Rohan Prem, and was taunting Sachin Baby with his trickery.
The hitter should have exercised extreme caution in this situation, especially because it was his first first-class match in nearly two years. Vishnu, on the other hand, had different plans. After assessing the surface, Vishnu unleashed a barrage of instinct strokes on the Uttar Pradesh spinners. Saurabh was smacked out of the attack after being hoisted for three sixes and four fours in an over. He marched down the field to pick up Kudleep and also hit the inside shot against the leg spinner with aplomb. A cramp attack delayed him considerably, so he played the reverse stroke against Kuldeep.
However, Vishnu, who scored 74, made a big statement upon his comeback to First Class cricket. “I had faith in my ability and was not intimidated by the bowlers’ reputation.” The aim was to hit anything within my range. Of course, I had to improvise as well when they challenged me by bowling a little wide. It was a terrific knock under pressure, but I was sad not to get a hundred. I had a good season with the white ball and was certain that I would be selected for the Ranji team. I’d like to thank KCA for believing in me and giving me another shot.
Vishnu Vinod produced many magnificent innings for Kerala in white ball cricket after his breakthrough innings of 193 not out against Madhya Pradesh in the 2018 season.
Vishnu possesses what many batters lack: bravery. He is now attempting to be more consistent. “I know I need to play more knocks like this, and I’m working hard on it.” But I don’t think I’ll adjust my batting style since aggression is my strongest skill,” he added.
