In the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2018-19 fixture between Hyderabad and Mumbai at the Chinnaswamy Stadium, Hyderabad won the toss and chose to bat. They posted a total of 246 runs on the board. They were 126/5 at one stage in the 35th over. However, Hyderabad needed to strike early with the ball if they had to put pressure on the Mumbai batting lineup. This intention got the better of Mohammed Siraj. He tried to unsettle the Mumbai opening batsman, Prithvi Shaw, by sledging him.
Mumbai’s openers Rohit Sharma and Prithvi Shaw gave their innings a good start. Moreover, Prithvi was dominating the bowlers in the powerplay. He got off to a flier and was taking on the Hyderabad bowlers. Prithvi was continuing his good run of form. Hyderabad captain Amabadi Rayudu had to break the dangerous-looking partnership. So, he brought Siraj into the attack.
Siraj decided to have a go at Prithvi Shaw
Siraj was steaming in with the ball in hand and was troubling Shaw with a barrage of bouncers. However, Prithvi decided to take on his short pitch deliveries. He played the pull shot and on two occasions top-edged it to the fine leg. However, to Siraj’s disappointment, the same fielder Ravi Kiran dropped both the catch.
Prithvi started to take advantage of the reprieves he got. He continued to attack the bowlers and play his shots. Siraj was frustrated with the fielding efforts. So, he decided to have a go at Prithvi. Meanwhile, Prithvi was playing his shots. He missed a couple of deliveries and consequently, Siraj told him something. Prithvi responded to Siraj and both of the exchanged words. It got heated up in the middle. However, both of them did not drag it for a long time and the umpires also did not intervene.
Shaw returned to the pavilion after a good inning of 61 off just 44 deliveries. His innings consisted of eight fours and a couple of sixes. Mehdi Hasan dismissed him as he got the ball to keep low and castle his stumps.
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What Next For Prithvi Shaw?
Shaw has seen a lot of ups and downs in his career overall. Failing the doping test and getting a one-year ban did not help his case. However, he has worked hard and made a return to the team. With that being said, the pandemic came at the wrong time for the youngster.
Prithvi Shaw will want to get back to cricket at the international level, as soon as possible. He will be hoping to make an impact and get selected for the upcoming tournaments. There is no doubt that the player has the potential and talent. However, he needs to show it with his performances in the games that matter.
If he fails to make an impact in the upcoming months, he may fade away like many of the other young talents. It will be interesting to see how this story develops now. Things could go either way, depending on how he performs, once this lockdown is over for good.
