Soon after lunch on the second day of the Kerala-Uttar Pradesh Ranji Trophy match at the S.D. College ground, the host suffered its all too familiar top order collapse and was tottering at 32 for three. Spinners Kuldeep Yadav and Saurabh Kumar were bowling in fine rhythm and giving nightmares to Kerala batters. Kuldeep had just breached the defence of Kerala’s most accomplished batter Rohan Prem and was teasing Sachin Baby with his guile when Vishnu Vinod walked in.
The situation warranted an extended period of caution from a batter, especially if he was someone who was playing his first First Class match in nearly two years. But Vishnu had other ideas. After sizing up the pitch, he put the hammer down on the Uttar Pradesh spinners with a flurry of instinct shots.
Saurabh was hoisted for three sixes and a four in an over and hit out of the attack. He strode down the pitch to pick Kuldeep and also played the inside-out shot with élan against the leg-spinner. An attack of cramps slowed him down and he got out playing the reverse stroke against Kuldeep.
But Vishnu, who made 74, had made a strong statement on his return.
Trust in ability
“I had trust in my ability and wasn’t intimidated by the reputation of the bowlers. The plan was to hit anything which was in my range. Of course, I had to improvise a bit too when they challenged me by bowling a bit wide. It was a good knock under pressure but I was a little disappointed for not getting a hundred.
“I had a pretty good season with the white ball and was sure that I would be picked for the Ranji team. I would like to thank KCA for having faith in my ability and giving me a chance again. I prepared well with my coach Biju George and was ready for the challenge, ‘‘ he said.
After his breakthrough innings of 193 not out against Madhya Pradesh in the 2018 season, Vishnu had played many breath-taking knocks for Kerala in white ball cricket.
Courage
Vishnu has in spades what some batters lack: courage. Now he is looking to be more consistent.
“I know I need to play more such knocks and I am working hard on it. But I don’t think I will change my batting style as I think my biggest strength is aggression,’‘ he said.
