Hemang Badani is surely the man with the Midas touch. Ever since he made
his international debut for India in the Asia Cup in Dhaka last May, Badani
has seized virtually every opportunity to trumpet his claims to being
arguably the most thrilling batting prospect across the land. The
24-year-old stepped into the middle at the fall of skipper Saurav Ganguly
in the 13th over when India Seniors were a precarious 76/3. Having made 64
not out and 70 in the earlier two games, Badani was very much the form
batsman but he suffered an agonizing moment soon after his arrival at the
wicket. Without a run added on the board, his senior partner VVS Laxman was
run out in a dreadful mix-up that left India Seniors very much behind the
eight ball. When Badani lost Yuvraj Singh at 96, it looked curtains for the
defending champions. But Badani and Virendra Shewag proceeded to play the
lead roles in a quite astonishing finale that kept the 15,000 strong crowd
richly entertained.
Badani was slightly circumspect in the early part of his innings but he
opened his shoulders with sixes off left arm spinners Sridharan Sriram and
Rahul Sanghvi in successive overs to stress a note of urgency in the run
chase. Badani's half century came up shortly afterwards in just 45 balls
and when he struck a third six over long-on off Reetinder Sodhi, India
Seniors had well and truly thrown down the gauntlet to their opponents.
Shewag was run out after a 168-run partnership but Badani simply refused to
cede any quarter. Two boundaries off Iqbal Siddiqui in the 44th over
brought the equation ever so closer and Badani closed out an 82-ball
century after his Tamil Nadu teammate Sridharan Sriram, ever the gentleman,
courteously conceded four overthrows. Skipper Dravid all but conceded
defeat by bringing on off spinner Sadagopan Ramesh in the 49th over. Badani
stroked him backward of point to post an extraordinary victory with eleven
balls to spare. The ice-man had triumphed once again under a mountain of
pressure.