Before the Ranji Trophy semi-final,Zaheer Khan was enjoying a well-deserved international break. All I did during that time was catch up on sleep, he says about the brief time away from the game. After almost sleep-walking through the semis,he woke up on the third day of the final,and his one inspired spell has all but handed the Ranji Trophy to his skipper Wasim Jaffer. Zaheers seven for 54 helped Mumbai take a 157-run first innings lead. With openers Jaffer and Vinayak Samant following it up with an unbeaten partnership of 130,Mumbai have pulled away from UP and with two more days to go,a turnaround seems close to impossible. Before Zaheer went into the zone,the game was interestingly poised and the smiles hadnt yet faded on the faces in the UP dressing room. They had crossed the 200-mark and the man in form Shivakant Shukla was in the 90s. With six wickets in hand,they thought they could double the score to overtake Mumbais first-innings total of 402. Unplayable Left-handed openers across the world dread Zaheer with the new ball. Even the best in the business over the last few years Matthew Hayden and Graeme Smith have been on his bunny list. Though UPs left-handed opener Shukla had survived Zaheers new-ball burst on Tuesday,the Mumbai paceman changed gears on Wednesday just as things were starting to slip out of Mumbais hands. His sharp in-cutter has accounted for several big names in the recent past,and Shukla couldnt be blamed for missing the line and getting out lbw. In any case,expecting a semi-final encore from Shukla wouldve been too much to ask for. With his unbeaten 178 against Tamil Nadu in the semis,he had helped UP climb Mt 400. This time,he took the team to the halfway mark but when he lost his trusted sherpa Parvinder Singh the man who gave him company during the heroics at Nagpur the climb got tougher. Uttar Pradeshs bowling hero Bhuvneshwar Kumar stuck around and gave Shukla some support,but it didnt prove quite enough. Once he and Shukla got out,it was a combination of shattered confidence and inspired bowling. The tail-enders didnt really have a chance against Zaheer,who by now was moving the ball around at will. It was a good track to bowl on,and I just wanted to put it in the right areas. It was a long day for us and we were getting tired,so I just wanted to finish the game early, Zaheer said about his spell,talking like a neighbourhood elder who,after getting bored with a sub-standard backyard game with the juniors,had taken off his kid gloves. Patience pays But Zaheer did have a few words of praise for Shukla. He was batting really well,it was turning out to be good contest. We just maintained the pressure and were patient, said Zaheer. After Shukla fell,Zaheer dismissed Praveen Kumar (6) and Amir Khan on successive deliveries,both edging the moving ball into the hands of wicketkeeper Samant,before dismissing Piyush Chawla and last-man Praveen Gupta. Watching Zaheers perfect seam and precise movement must have been a lesson for the other pacemen in the match. But at the same time,the return of Indias star bowler on the domestic circuit also puts the seasons Ranji performances in perspective.
