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Mumbai's eternal crisis men Shams Mulani and Tanush Kotian once again stood tall amid the ruins with a 165-run stand for the eighth wicket as the defending champions staged an impressive fightback to reach 278 for 8 against Haryana on the opening day of their Ranji Trophy quarter-final in Kolkata on Saturday.
Having opted to bat, Mumbai's batting unit comprising former Test vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane (31), T20I skipper Suryakumar Yadav (9), batting all-rounder Shivam Dube (28) were down in the dumps at 113 for 7, largely due to some incisive bowling by the military medium trundlers from Haryana led by workhorse Anshul Kamboj (3/58 in 18 overs).
But once the moisture dried up, the Eden strip became a batting paradise as usual with Mulani (91, 178 balls) and last year's 'Player of the Tournament' Kotian (85 batting, 154 balls) making full use of the loose deliveries.
While Mumbai might not end up positing a huge total, Mulani and Kotian have done enough to ensure that they have something to bowl at when Haryana come out to bat.
The decision by Rahane to bat first was based on faith that they can see off the first hour but inexperienced opener Ayush Mhatre (0) was dismissed off the very first delivery of the match as Kamboj hit the good length on a regular basis.
None of the Haryana seamers -- Kamboj, Sumit Kumar (2/57 in 13 overs), Anuj Thakral (1/59 in 18 overs) and Ajit Chahal (1/21 in 5 overs) clocked above 130 kmph but almost everyone got enough movement in and away from the batter pitching it between 4m to 6m length.
Mhatre got one that moved in and he was bowled through the gate. Sumit then had other opener Akash Anand, who wanted to leave the delivery from length but found it jagging back enough to dismantle the off stick.
Siddhesh Lad and Suryakumar were also victims of that shade inward movement with no distinct footwork to cover the line of deliveries while skipper Rahane got a late outswinger from Kamboj.
The Haryana seamer doesn't bowl at express pace but is a sure-shot candidate for India A squad when it tours England late May, early June.
Dube after some big blows was snapped at gully and when Shardul closed his bat face to offer simple return catch to Thakral, Mumbai seemed to be heading for a paltry first innings total.
However Mulani and Kotian joined forces at a time when the pitch became easier for batting. The Haryana seamers, who looked menacing when there was moisture underneath the surface and some nip in the air suddenly looked pedestrian as both the batters cut and drove with ease.
With no movement off the surface, the same length troubled batters in the first hour became a hittable one.
The two spinners Jayant Yadav and Nishant Sindhu are ordinary at best and had no help off the surface to trouble batters as runs came at a quick clip. It was a late cut by Mulani that got him to his 19th first-class half-century while Kotian followed suit.
Mulani looked good for a second red ball hundred but offered a simple return catch to Jayant, who had briefly played for India.
Brief Scores:
Mumbai 1st Innings: 278/8 in 81 overs (Shams Mulani 91, Tanush Kotian 85 batting, Ajinkya Rahane 31, Anshul Kamboj 3/58 in 18 overs).