When Umang Sharma trumped Sarfaraz Khan

Any sort of competition within the team is healthy. It pushes the players to do well and keeps the team in good shape. So when Umang Sharma and Sarfaraz Khan matched each other stroke for stroke at the Sawai Man Singh stadium in Jaipur against Bengal, it was a delight to watch not only for the fans but for the think-tank as well.

Umang walked in to bat with both openers back in the hut and just eight runs on the board. It soon became 49 for 3 and that's when Sarfaraz joined him. For the remaining overs on the second day, the Bengal bowlers were made to chase leather.

"Yeh Sarfaraz hi hai na bhaiya? (This is Sarfaraz only right?)." The ground staff at the venue kept getting these question from a few college students in the first hour of play on the third day. Some of them had made their way an hour ago before scheduled start to see the 'IPL star' as they call him. Needless to say, in the Uttar Pradesh-Bengal clash, the loudest cheers were reserved for Sarfaraz.

Early on in the day, Manoj Tiwary dropped Sarfaraz much to the delight of the fans. That's when the carnage started. Both Sarfaraz and Umang were keen to target the bowlers on the placid track. Sarfaraz had surpassed Umang's score with ease and was nearing his ton.

The hurry to reach the three-figure mark was clear. He hammered Aamir Gani for a six to enter the 80s. The UP camp noticed his eagerness and calls for 'pura khelna hai. Partnership. Baat kar k khelna hai (need to bat the entire day, building a partnership is important; should speak to each other and play),' started coming from their camp.

Sarfaraz's hurry eventually led to his downfall as he hammered a length ball straight to cover and was dismissed for a pleasing 85. It took the right-hander no effort to surpass Umang's score but by the end of the day, Umang trumped his partner by a mile.

During Umang's innings of 136, one thing that stood out was how he curbed his instincts. While he wanted to play positive cricket, he knew it was important to stay at the crease for a longer time. He was never hurried and when Pragyan Ojha tried to rush through his overs, he made the spinner wait.

Umang made his debut in 2012 and had to wait three years to get his first century. He had only one ton till now and on the day his hunger to get to the three-figure mark, the pain of knowing what it's like to miss a century after getting close it and some sensible play helped him overshadow Sarfaraz - the much celebrated figure in the team.

Eklavya Dwivedi loses his cool

After a fighting stand between Sarfaraz and Umang, Eklavya Dwivedi walked out to bat at No. 6 and started dominating immediately. He hit two beautifully-timed sixes over the long-off fielder off Aamir Gani to race to 17 off just seven deliveries.

In the next over, he was up against Sayan Ghosh. A rush of blood meant he went after pacer and failed to connect. The result? Off stump knocked out. Dwivedi has had a frustrating match so far and it became much more cleared when he hammered the other two stumps down with his bat. The umpire wasn't impressed and had a word with his before the UP captain walked back. Not only loss of concentration but some match fees as well.

RCA ground staff goes out of the way

When the idea of neutral venues was proposed, one of the counter arguments presented was that it'll push the local fans away. While the recommendation has been approved and implemented, it's now up to the different associations to take care of the fans.

The Rajasthan Cricket Association ground staff sets a prime example. An hour before Lunch, they took a head count of the number of food boxes needed and every single day they would go and get an additional few boxes. All these boxes, along with water bottles, were given to fans who had come in to watch the clash.

No RCA official had come and had a word with them to do this. All this because they wanted the fans feel welcomed. These three members of the ground staff are assigned the duty of catering to the umpires. They could have done their job and gone away but they chose to, in their little way, promote domestic cricket and make the fans feel welcomed.