Ranji Trophy: Vidarbha centurions Faiz Fazal, Akshay Wadkar set Jamtha on fire | Cricket News – Times of India

NAGPUR: Soon after becoming only the second Vidarbha batter to score a century in each innings of a First-Class match, Faiz Fazal (112 & 103) pointed his finger to the ground. It was his way of announcing that he still belongs there. The celebration also suggested that he wanted to let his bat do the talking for him.
This was Faiz’s third commanding century in three consecutive innings — a century in the Vijay Hazare Trophy match, and twice in this game. The other mainstay of the Vidarbha team, Akshay Wadkar, too underlined his consistency with a brilliant unbeaten ton. Their twin century effort put Vidarbha in a winning position against Railways in the ongoing Ranji Trophy opener at Jamtha stadium.
Opener Faiz (103; 138b, 11×4, 1×6) and Wadkar (130*; 167b, 19×4) both crafted their innings with finesse and propelled Vidarbha into setting a massive 472-run target. Vidarbha further derailed the railmen by reducing them to 47 for 3 by stumps on Day-3.
It was that kind of a day where both Faiz and Wadkar clubbed fluency with aggression. If Faiz, who became the 7th player in India to score 8,000+ runs on Tuesday, dispatched the ball to each corner of the ground, Wadkar pierced the square boundary on both sides with classical square cuts and sweep shots.
When Wadkar played sweep and a square cut off in-form leggie Karn Sharma, it gave the impression that he was in for a big knock. He kept doubling up and toyed with every bowler.
After skipper Faiz’s departure, vice-captain Wadkar, who is the most successful wicketkeeper of Vidarbha so far, took the onus on himself and helped Vidarbha to 420 for 8 declared. Wadkar and Aditya Sarwate (64) were involved in a 139-run partnership that turned around the game completely in Vidarbha’s favor.
Earlier, Faiz, who became the second Vidarbha batter after Amit Deshpande (2001-02 season) to score a century in each innings of a First-Class match, scored his last 85 runs in just 96 balls. The southpaw opener was calculative in his approach. He charged left-arm spinner Aakash Pandey and scored 40 runs off him. The innings had aggression and elegance which not only lifted Vidarbha but also his morale at the right time.