Gambhir not ready to give up yet

When another Ranji season started off across the nation, there were very few takers for cricket in whites at the picturesque Roshanara Club ground. Even the lure of watching Virender Sehwag was not enough to bring people in, except the cricket romantics who still love watching cricketers in whites.

While taking a round of the ground, one encountered two small steel placards and, on moving closer, two saplings. Further enquiry revealed that Delhi captain Gautam Gambhir had planted the saplings in memory of Phillip Hughes and former India and Delhi cricketer Raman Lamba. Cricket Australia wanted people to celebrate Hughes' life and career innovatively and, for an intense man like Gambhir, it is a thoughtful gesture.

Gambhir probably views Roshanara from a different perspective. For him, the 22-yard pitch at the club ground is probably a gateway to take Delhi to the knock-outs with outright wins.

He fought and debated to get Delhi's opening home match shifted to the ground, because he believes it will help batsmen and bowlers.

He walked the talk in the first game, scrapping his way to an unbeaten 123 in Delhi's first-day score of 260 for 6.

He played 270 balls - 45 out of 90 overs in the day - in an innings that wasn't smooth but ranked high on the grit quotient.

He was ready to fight and look ugly between playing the glorious drives and, more importantly, wanted to hang in there.

A pace attack comprising Sudeep Tyagi, Abhishek Bhat and Chirag Jani - with 120 first-class wickets between them - would not have bothered a batsman with 4000-plus Test runs, but these are different days for Gambhir, who was also omitted from India's squad of 30 probables for the 2015 World Cup.

The Roshanara pitch didn't have the 'rub of green' it is known for, sporting instead a bald look, but the bounce was more even. Gambhir initially found it difficult. There was desperation to avoid the dab shot. A ball that reared up from short of good length saw him awkwardly jump with both feet in air. There was an occasion when he tried to leave a Bhat delivery but, while shouldering arms, saw the ball hit the bat and trickle down towards slip.

By the time he had scored barely 20, Unmukt Chand had already hit five boundaries and then tried an ugly pull shot which didn't please Gambhir, at the non-striker's end. Chand didn't have the heart to look towards Gambhir as he trudged back to pavilion.

Gambhir concentrated harder. There was the sweet sound of ball meeting the bat, when he hit Jani through the covers. Had there been any other fielder, it would have been two runs but Tyagi did what looked a little like spot-jogging and the ball ended up at the boundary. As the spinners came into operation, there was a glimpse of the vintage Gambhir. On 27, he also had a slice of luck when wicketkeeper Sagar Jogiyani bungled an easy stumping off Kamlesh Makvana.

Sehwag was not so lucky. As he went for a third run, he failed to beat a Sheldon Jackson throw from the deep fine-leg boundary, the desperate dive in vain.

But luck was on Gambhir's side. He went into lunch at 29*, and came back and completed his fifty with a square drive. There was a flurry of strokes against the spinners. Makvana and left-arm spinner Dharmendra Jadeja were lifted for sixes. When Delhi were in trouble at 145 for 4, Gambhir found Rajat Bhatia at his side, a player who has frequently bailed the side out in the last decade, with bat and ball.

The stand-out shot of the day was Gambhir's picture-perfect straight drive off Jani. It hit where the batsman wanted it to and went where it was supposed to go.

Just like the lunch interval, Gambhir went into tea two short of a milestone - at 98. When he came back, there was an urgency to get to the three-figure mark. He tried a hoick off Makvana towards the cow corner but it went as far as deep fine leg for a single. The dressing room stood up to applaud and there was an acknowledgement with a raise of the bat.

His intent was heartening to watch, as he put his head down and started again from scratch, ready to leave deliveries, ready to grind it out.

A reasonably good pitch to bat on against an average bowling attack can't give a picture of what Gambhir will do in more adverse situations against better domestic attacks. But it does show that Gambhir is not ready to throw in the towel just yet.

* December 8, 2014: 3.30am GMT Gambhir's score at lunch has been corrected