Ranji Trophy Final, MUM vs VID: Mumbai Pacer Tushar Deshpande Felt Karun Nair's Wicket Was Crucial Late In The Day

Mumbai pacer Tushar Deshpande felt getting Karun Nair's wicket late in the day was crucial and it gave hosts an advantage.

"It was a very crucial wicket (Karun Nair) and the timing was crucial. Coming at the end of the day and the fact that a new batsman had to see off the day."

Deshpande stated Mumbai were made to work hard by Vidarbha for each and every wicket.

"The wicket has turned out to be very good to bat. There is some turn, slow turn. Spinners did a good job., Wicket had true bounce and we earned all the wickets. Vidarbha batted really well,'' he added.

The pacer was of the opinion that they are not thinking much about the result at this point in time.

"We are just focusing on the process and bowling in good areas,'' he added.

Karun Nair and Akshay Wadkar's partnership was a challenging period for Mumbai but Deshpande said the team was not frustrated.

" We were not frustrated at all. We wanted our bowlers to pitch the ball in the right areas. Patience was the key. They played good cricketing shots. No bad shots were played and we have to give them credit,'' he stated.

The 28-year-old waxed eloquent on team-mate Dhawal Kulkarni who will be bidding farewell to the Mumbai Ranji dressing room on the final day.

"He is a legend and has been there to guide. He has a very calm attitude. Things to learn from him is the resilience. It shows his mental toughness. There is a lot to learn from him,'' Deshpande revealed.

Although, Deshpande offered no comments on Shreyas Iyer's absence from the field, the team that Iyer was out with a back pain but is now fine to take the field on day five.

On the other hand, Vidarbha's Karun Nair felt his team will have to be realistic about their chances.

"We need to be realistic. It's a tough task, one thing I can say about this team is that they don't give up. Realistically it's a tough task but it's cricket and anything can happen. I would have given you a better answer if I was batting."

With regard to the DRS chance that they took to review Nair's dismissal, the batter offered this explanation.

"I thought I had a slight edge but Wadkar felt there was a gap between bat and ball. So he felt let's take a chance and see.

Nair revealed he and Wadkar wanted to keep things simple during their partnership.

"It was trying to keep it simple and keep batting for as long as you can. We both wanted to rotate the strike and keep the partnership going. We knew the runs would come if we can do that."

He also felt the Mumbai spinners bowled well in tandem.

"All three of them bowled really well. Anyone who can land it on the spot does the job for you and all three of them did. Credit to them, they kept things tight,'' Nair added.