Seasoned spin duo of Shams Mulani and Tanush Kotian became catalysts of Rest of India's sudden middle-order collapse that saw them lose six wickets for only 23 runs in Lucknow on Friday, putting Mumbai within sniffing distance of the Irani Cup triumph despite Abhimanyu Easwaran's heroic 191.
In reply to Mumbai's first innings score of 537, RoI were cruising along at 393/4, riding on Easwaran and Test team's second keeper Dhruv Jurel's (93) 165-run stand for the fifth wicket.
However, left-arm spinner Mulani (3/122 in 40 overs) broke Rest's resistance with quick dismissals of the two set batters in a space of 10 minutes to give the match a decisive turn on Day 4.
Off-spinner Kotian (3/101 in 27 overs) then polished off the tail as RoI were all out for 416, handing a 121-run first innings lead to Mumbai.
Prithvi Shaw (76 off 105 balls) then came out all guns blazing as the ball started turning square with Mumbai finishing the day at 153/6 with an overall lead of 274.
Rest of India's off-spinner Saransh Jain (4/67 in 18 overs) and left-arm spinner Manav Suthar (2/40 in 17 overs) looked way more menacing in the second essay with a lot of deliveries keeping low along with appreciable turn on offer.
On a track which looked like a batting paradise for better part of the first three days, 12 wickets fell on Day 4 with spinners accounting for 11 of them.
Survival is extremely difficult and even if Rest chases something in the range of 325 in 75 overs, it will be an uphill task to face Mulani and Kotian on an abrasive surface where one needs to put the ball in right areas, allowing the track to do the rest.
Saransh, who plays domestic cricket for Madhya Pradesh, isn't known to be a big turner of the ball but uses his height to get bounce. However, during the last two sessions, he was getting to turn deliveries at right angles.
Shaw's innings will worth much more as he understood that survival is difficult on a fourth day track and attacked relentlessly in the first few overs. He smashed five boundaries off Mukesh Kumar in his three-over spell before Ruturaj Gaikwad realised that spinners would be more effective than fast bowlers.
Once Saransh and Suthar took over, Mumbai batters started looking a tad shaky. Suthar got Ajinkya Rahane missing an armer while Shreyas Iyer leaned on the backfoot off Saransh only to find the off-break keep really low.
Shaw, who could have got a hundred, survived a leg-before while trying to drive on the front-foot as the ball went through the gate. He wasn't lucky second time as Saransh got drift and Shaw played down the wrong line to get castled.
Brief Scores:
Mumbai 153/6 and 537 (Prithvi Shaw 76, Saransh Jain 4/67) vs Rest of India 416 (Abhimanyu Easwaran 191, Dhruv Jurel 93, Shams Mulani 3/122, Tanush Kotian 3/101).
Mumbai lead by 274 runs.
