Sai Kishore Takes 7/79 in County Championship, Stirring India Debate

Sai Kishore produced a match-winning spell in the County Championship, taking 5/20 from 18 overs, 12 of them maidens, as Derbyshire were bowled out for 105 chasing 319. With 2/59 in the first innings, he finished with 7/79 for the match.

Spin did all the damage in that final innings. Tom Price took 3/59 and Middleton 2/17, so all ten Derbyshire wickets fell to spinners.

Useful with the bat

Kishore also helped Gloucestershire’s first innings. Batting at No. 8 on the opening day on a tricky surface, he made 20 from 39 balls, with two fours and a six.

Overlooked by India

The performance follows his omission from India’s squad for the one-off Test against Afghanistan. Selectors picked fellow left-arm spinners Harsh Dubey and Manav Suthar, a decision that surprised some given his consistent form for Tamil Nadu in first-class cricket.

Suthar took seven wickets and won Player of the Match as India won by an innings and 300 runs. He then led the wicket-takers in the two-Test series against Sri Lanka with 16.

Suthar has started his international career well, but Kishore’s latest display is another reminder of his quality in red-ball cricket, and it strengthens his claim for a future place in India’s Test side.