Sachin Baby led Kerala from the front at Rajkot. He is justifiably proud of the way his men fought all the way, though they narrowly failed to clinch a place in the quarterfinals of the Ranji Trophy, having finished runner-up to Madhya Pradesh on run quotient. He had made a superb hundred in that match, but could not quite finish it off. If he could bat for a few more overs, he would have been able to help Kerala get past Madhya Pradesh on run quotient. “I was very disappointed when I got out – the ball from the left-arm spinner (Kumar Kartikeya) deviated more than I expected after pitching into the rough – but I would say it has been one of my best knocks,” Sachin told The Hindu on Tuesday. “And this has been one of the best Kerala teams I have been part of since I made my Ranji debut in 2009.”
Baby said a lot of work had gone into making the team’s fine performance, in which it won two matches including one against Gujarat chasing down a stiff target at six-an-over, with he himself scoring priceless 62. “I believe in discipline, and not just in batting and discipline but off the field as well,” he said. “We have been able to get that in this team. I have often thought that was what prevented the Kerala side from realising its full potential.”
Huge potential
