Goa opener Ishaan Gadekar.
Photo Credits: The Goan
PANAJI
It was his late father and first coach, Prasad Gadekar's dream that his son take up cricket, play Ranji and go on to and play at a higher level. Ishaan Gadekar is taking his baby steps in that direction. After impressing in the white ball formats earlier in the season for Goa, the southpaw opener waited for his chance in whites, and seized the opportunity he did on debut against Kerala in Trivandrum in the ongoing Elite Group C Ranji Trophy fixture.
On the second day of the fourth round Ranji match against Kerala, Ishaan overcame a bout of cramps when on 52, to return to bat at a crucial juncture and stay unbeaten at 76 with his captain Darshan Misal playing an important role to an unbroken 40-run sixth-wicket stand. On Thursday, he found lower-order support to reach his maiden 100 on Ranji debut in style with a flick to the square leg boundary and also guided Goa past the home team's first innings score.
In registering a 105 on Ranji debut, Ishaan followed in the footsteps of Sumiran Amonkar and Arjun Tendulkar (earlier in the season) to score a century on debut at this level
"It is a good feeling to score a 100 on debut. The wicket was helpful to the spinners. Initially, I spent time at the wicket and then everything fell into place," the left-handed opener told The Goan on call from his hotel. On his noteworthy partnerships that helped him reach the milestone and secure Goa's first innings lead, Ishaan acknowledged the efforts of his captain Darshan Misal and lower-order batter, Mohit Redkar. "Darshan batted very well while Mohit played a cameo. It was crucial to take the lead against them (Kerala). Our plan was to play normally, not do anything extra, go ball by ball," he revealed.
"I would like to dedicate the 100 to my late father (Prasad). He is not only my dad, but my first coach too. It was his dream to see me play for Goa, and Ranji Trophy and go on to play for India," the 25-year-old poignantly stated. Ishaan incidentally lost his dad in 2012 due to illness when he was moving up the grades and playing for Goa U-16s at that point in time. "My ultimate goal is to represent India, and play IPL too, but for now I just want to do well for Goa," the top-order batter from Bicholim said.
