Ranji Trophy | Arpit Vasavada: We have the upper hand

Saurashtra's Arpit Vasavada (left) celebrates his century against Bengal while teammate Cheteshwar Pujara applauds on Day Two of the Ranji Trophy final at the SCA Stadium in Rajkot yesterday. Pic/ PTI

Arpit Vasavada, who struck a crucial hundred in the Ranji Trophy final in the company of childhood friend Cheteshwar Pujara on Tuesday, says he was determined to bat time with the Indian batting mainstay, a plan that worked out very well for Saurashtra. Both Vasavada (106 off 287) and Pujara (66 off 237) batted for five hours on Day Two for their 142-run stand off 380 balls, succeeding in their plan to wear down the Bengal attack.

Pujara overcame illness to make a valuable contribution while Vasavada, who is coached by the former's father Arvind, could not have asked for a bigger stage to score a back-to-back hundred. "We have been playing together for long. It was in my mind that because of Pujara's health, he will bat after me and I knew he would be there [in the middle]. So, for me, it was about not getting tired but to keep playing with him," said Vasavada.

Pujara and Vasavada put Saurashtra in a strong position, taking their side to 384-8 at the close of play on a deteriorating surface. Pujara has mastered the art of batting long and Vasavada said batting alongside him helped him immensely. The focus was on defending in their marathon stand. "We batted well. It is not an easy wicket. We have got runs on the board so we have an upper hand." Asked if there was a specific plan to tire out Bengal's pace attack, the left-handed Vasavada said: "We just wanted to bat as long as possible to tire them out." Vasavada, 31, is having his best first-class season with four hundred.

"It was about staying on the wicket. I have learned from Pujara's father. Even Cheteshwar was telling me in the middle, what to do, what not to do. I get a lot of confidence when he is at the other end."

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