Kerala’s batting flowered pretty late in the season but it will hardly make a difference to the state of the contest as the visitor’s passive approach and easy contentment will likely consign the match to a tame draw on Monday.
Kerala, riding on centuries from Akshay Chandran (184) and Sachin Baby (113) declared its first innings at 514 for seven against Andhra – with a lead of 242 - and by close on the penultimate day it had reduced the host to 19 for one at the Dr. P.V.G. Raju ACA Sports Complex stadium here on Sunday.
But on a flat track, it will require a poor batting performance from the host to lose the match on the final day. The marked reluctance by the visitor to quicken the scoring was surprising, and it overshadowed the centuries from Akshay and Baby.
