Jalaj Saxena equals Bishan Bedi as Kerala notch up innings win against Odisha

The ball gripped, the bails flew, and rain threatened to play party-pooper. But Kerala found its voice under the dark, sombre clouds. By the time the final Odisha wicket tumbled at the Greenfield Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram on Wednesday afternoon, the hosts had notched up an innings win with seven vital points on their home turf. Kerala needed a little over 23 overs to wrap up Odisha’s innings for 143 and register an innings and 36-run win.At the centre was Jalaj Saxena, the veteran off-spinner, who mesmerised Odisha with his bagful of tricks to finish with figures of 5/34 from 18 overs.This was Jalaj’s 35th five-wicket haul in the Ranji Trophy, a phenomenal number that puts him level with the great Bishan Singh Bedi for the joint fifth-most five-fors in the tournament’s history.