Tushar Deshpande, a Mumbai fast bowler, has revealed that he played the recently finished Jammu and Kashmir match while suffering from acute bronchitis. Deshpande contributed significantly to Mumbai’s 35-run victory over the hosts in the first round of the present Ranji Trophy season at Srinagar’s Sher-i-Kashmir Stadium.
Tushar Deshpande revealed that he briefly lost consciousness during warm-up.
However, the 30-year-old revealed that he was eager ‘to do everything’ for his team, putting aside the anxiety he was experiencing before and during the play.
“This was a crucial game for us and for me personally, too. Jammu & Kashmir had defeated us last season and we wanted to start this campaign on the right note. It was also big for me because I was returning to Ranji after a year and a half. I had blanked out for 10 seconds during warm-up, but the will to do it for my team greatly helped me get over my discomfort,” stated Deshpande, as quoted by Indian Express.
Deshpande bowled the most number of overs in J&K’s first innings (19), picking up three wickets while conceding 57 runs in the process. He was unbeaten on 8 off 20 balls in Mumbai’s second innings. The Mumbai-born picked up the wicket of Shubham Khajuria (0 off 2) in the other innings to end up with figures of 1/56 in 15 balls.
Shams Mulani was the star of the show. The left-handed all-rounder secured 91 and 41 with the bat and 2/74 and 7/46, both in the first and second innings of Mumbai and J&K, respectively. J&K had defeated Mumbai in the previous instalment of India’s premier red-ball domestic season, a game famous for Rohit Sharma’s return to Ranji.
Mumbai will next take on Chhattisgarh at the MCA Sharad Pawar Cricket Academy in Mumbai. The contest is slated to commence on Saturday, October 25.
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