Mumbai, Mar 25: In what was another low-scoring Syed Mushtaq Ali quarter-final, Punjab’s VRV Singh and Manpreet Gony claimed two wickets in the first two overs and then had Madhya Pradesh reeling at 16 for the loss of six wickets in the sixth over. Back in the side after approximately a two-and-a-half year injury lay-off, VRV finished with a four-for to help restrict MPCA to 120, while Gurkirat Mann scored 57 not out, to take Punjab into the semi-finals.
Skipper Harbhajan Singh, who also claimed two wickets, especially lauded the efforts of VRV and young batsman Mann in the post-match media interaction.
Excerpts:
On the win
It was a good win. [...]. Our seamers put us in a very good position taking those five quick wickets in the first six to seven overs. Unfortunately, we didn’t have other seamers who could bowl as well as [Manpreet] Gony and VRV [Singh]. [MP] got 120-odd runs, which were good enough runs on the board. But overall we played well. We bowled well, we batted well so I am pretty happy as a captain that we won the game.
On semi-final opponents Mumbai
Tomorrow will be a good game. Mumbai has always been a good team, whether it is the four-day game, Twenty20 or one-day format. We will try and put up a good performance tomorrow and see what happens. We just need to concentrate on what we can do rather than think about what the opposition will do. Yes, they are a good side but we will try and compete and hopefully we will do our best and get the results we are looking for.
On VRV Singh’s comeback
A back injury is something that can take your career away from you but hats off to him – he worked really hard. From where he has come, to [return] and [bowl] the way he has requires a lot of effort and will. I think he is bowling superb, touchwood. Hopefully he will continue to do a good job for us even in tomorrow’s [semi-final against Mumbai] and then hopefully in the final as well.
On VRV’s match fitness
He is fit. He is bowling well and the more he plays, the better he’ll get.
On batsman Gurkirat Mann
Gurkirat is a special talent. He has been scoring a lot of runs for Punjab in Under-19 and Under-22 cricket. He scored a hundred and another 60-odd [runs] even in the one-dayers for Punjab which was quite satisfying and he is doing really well in this format as well. He is a player for the future. Mandeep Singh is another great prospect from Punjab; they can definitely play for India in a couple of years if we keep on working on their game.
On whether the pitch helped the fast bowlers
It has a bit of bounce and they used it to their advantage. [...] Both [VRV and Gony] can bowl quick. It was a good toss to lose. We bowled first and we [restricted them] to 120-odd.
