More surprises may be in store in Ranji Trophy Super League

If the events in the first round of matches is anything to go by, the Ranji Trophy Super League is not going to be without surprises. Fancied teams had better watch out, for sides, hitherto considered weak or lucky to make this prestigious round, have narrowed the gap. Another lesson brought home forcibly is that it is imperative for all teams to play with their best players if they are serious about winning the country's premier national competition.

Karnataka may have to pay dearly for their ignominous defeat at the hands of Mumbai at Bangalore. It is not very often that the defending champions go down by an innings and plenty and with more than a day to spare. But that was indeed the humilation that Karnataka had to endure in a mismatch they would like to forget in a hurry. With Javagal Srinath, Venkatesh Prasad, Anil Kumble, Vijay Bhardwaj and Rahul Dravid sitting out the match for various reasons and only Sunil Joshi among the players who returned from Australia on duty, the odds were against Karnataka, but few would have expected Mumbai to complete such a quick demolition job. After all, they too were without Sachin Tendulkar and Ajit Agarkar. But one must commend the efforts of the Mumbai batsmen, notably Amit Pagnis, Wasim Jaffer and Jatin Paranjpe, who adopted a methodical approach once they were aware that they had a winning chance.

The events at Bangalore, besides making it clear that teams have to play their strongest sides, also drove home the point that it is time the Board of Control for Cricket in India made it mandatory for players to take part in important national competitions. Excuses like `personal reasons' or `taking a break' should not be valid for dropping out of the matches.

Playing at home, Tamil Nadu and Baroda were expected to get the better of Saurashtra and Bihar but not in the emphatic manner in which they completed the task. Tamil Nadu, which topped the South Zone table are shaping into a good all round side and one of the heartening features was the performance of Aashish Kapoor. The former India player is aiming for a comeback and he did not hurt his cause any by taking six wickets and scoring a breezy half century. Tamil Nadu's strength lies in their batting, as they proved against Saurashtra but the bowling too has the right blend of seam and spin. Their coach, former State and zone medium pacer Bharath Kumar has wielded them into a fighting unit and at the moment they look like the dark horses for the title.

Baroda made a most impressive start. Their formidable batting line up covers up for any deficiences in the bowling but in pace spearhead Zakeer Khan, who took ten wickets against Bihar. They have a performer of uncommon ability. Basically however, as they proved in the West Zone league and again against Bihar, Baroda's batting is not the kind to be dismissed cheaply and this, more than other factor, will stand them in good stead in the remaining matches in their group.

For the losers, it certainly isn't the end of the road. There are still three matches to go for Karnataka (group A), Saurashtra (group C) and Bihar (group B). All the same, it won't be easy to recover unless there is marked improvement in their play.

The remaining three matches were all affected to some degree by rain. The worst hit was the group C game between Haryana and Uttar Pradesh at Rohtak, where in effect, there was little over a day's play. But even in this limited period, one could witness the encouraging signs of a young bowler on his way up. Sallabh Sriwastava, who played a leading role in the triumph of the Indian under-19 team in the World Cup in Sri Lanka last month showed that he was indeed a talented bowler while capturing six Haryana wickets for 82.

No play was possible at the Ferozshah Kotla grounds on the first day of the match between Delhi and Rajasthan. Delhi always looked to be the better side and with the all round skills at their command they managed to take first innings points in the remaining three days. This may prove handy in the ultimate analysis in the tough group A. Delhi has arguably the strongest batting line up among the 15 teams in the Super League but the bowling too cannot be taken lightly.

At Chandigarh too, there was virtually no play in the Group B game between Hyderabad and Punjab. But interest was always maintained thanks to the presence of former Indian captain Md Azharuddin, now on the comeback trail. This was expected to be a keen contest but Hyderabad's shocking collapse in the first innings meant that they were always on the backfoot, though they redeemed themselves with a much better showing in the second innings. But the most heartwarming display came from Ravneet Ricky. One of the heroes of the Indian under-19 team's victorious campaign in Sri Lanka, the Punjab opener confirmed his growing maturity with a splendid century.