Half-centuries by skipper B Indrajith (87) and debutant M Shahrukh Khan (82 batting) helped Tamil Nadu recover from 31 for 4 to a respectable 249 for 6 in 90 overs on the opening day of the Ranji Trophy Elite Group 'B' match here Thursday.
Electing to bat first, Tamil Nadu suffered an early jolt when the experienced Abhinav Mukund was leg-before wicket for a duck to Sandeep Warrier off the second ball of the match.
B Aparajith (3), who made a ton in the last match against Bengal, didn't last too long and was done in by a beautiful delivery from Warrier.
Opener Kaushik Gandhi (19) and Dinesh Karthik (4), who is back in the state squad after being part of the national T20 side in the series against Australia, were sent back by Basil Thampi to leave Tamil Nadu in a spot of bother.
Dinesh Karthik was caught brilliantly by K B Arun Karthick.
Indrajith first put on 50 runs for the fifth wicket with N Jagadeesan (21) to lead the home team's recovery.
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Later, the captain added 103 runs for the sixth wicket with Shahrukh Khah. It was a phase in which the duo mixed caution and some aggressive play. The two countered the pacemen well and displayed some good footwork to take on the spinners.
Indrajith looked good to score a century before being bowled by Warrier.
Shahrukh, who remained not out on 82 (7X4, 1X6) and M Mohammed (25 batting) added 65 runs for the seventh wicket to help Tamil Nadu's cause.
Brief scores: Tamil Nadu (B Indrajith 87, Shahrukh Khan 82 batting, Sandeep Warrier 3 for 42) vs Kerala. (Toss: TN).
At Mohali: Himachal Pradesh 244 for 5 in 90 overs (R R Dhawan 61, N R Gangta 58, A Kalsi 50 not out) vs Punjab. (Toss: Punjab).
At Indore: Hyderabad 124 all out in 35.3 overs (Himalay Agarwal 69 not out, Avesh Khan 7 for 24) vs Madhya Pradesh 168 for 1 in 46 overs (Ajay Rohera 81 batting, Rajat Patidar 51 batting). (Toss: MP).