Ranji Trophy: Sai Kishore says lower order's lapse cost Tamil Nadu in Jaipur
Tamil Nadu captain Sai Kishore said in Jaipur on October 14, 2026 that his side’s failure to take a first-innings lead against Rajasthan in the Ranji Trophy was down to the lower order’s lack of application, and he added that the toss, won by Rajasthan, played a significant role as the pitch changed. He pointed to a late collapse and a surface that offered more to spinners as the match progressed.
“I think it was a lack of application. We lost our last four wickets for very few runs (10) and the lower order has to contribute in First Class cricket. When we bowled, there was hardly any assistance from the pitch and it played more like a seaming wicket. But as the game progressed, it started offering more to the spinners, making it a toss-oriented wicket. Still, we should have contributed more with the bat,” he said.
Sai Kishore credited Rajasthan's middle-order response for changing the course of the match, highlighting individual contributions. “To be fair, Mahipal played really well. He counter-attacked us really well from a very difficult situation (25 for three). Even Kartik, for that matter (came in at 31 for four). He might not have scored a lot of runs, but made enough impact for them to secure those three points,” he said, referring to Mahipal Lomror’s 84 and Kartik Sharma’s 42 in the second innings.
Coach Yo Mahesh pointed to positives despite disappointment at missing the first-innings lead and stressed the importance of the toss when playing away. “We would have loved to take the first-innings lead, but there are a lot of positives. Playing away from home, the toss is critical. Deepesh (three for 89) and Saravana Kumar (three for 68) took three wickets each, Sai Kishore did well with the ball in the second innings (three for 50), and three of our batters did well (Andre Siddarth, Jagadeesan, and Pradosh Ranjan Paul),” he said.
Rajasthan’s recovery in the second innings, anchored by Lomror and supported by Kartik, ensured they collected the three points from the match, while Tamil Nadu left Jaipur without a first-innings lead.
