Railways' Wakaskar looks for seamless transition

Since his first-class debut in 2012, Saurabh Wakaskar has played the first 20 of his 27 games for Baroda, which has its base in Vadodara, the place he calls home. This season, however, the 24-year-old has turned out for a team other than Baroda for the first time, and after a slow beginning, has managed his first big contribution for Railways, his employers for the last year and a half.

An unbeaten 161 against Mumbai, his fifth first-class hundred, helped Railways swell their lead to 171 with a whole day to go. While a last-day push for a win on a fairly placid Wankhede surface might seem far-fetched, the visitors would hope to at least take one point off the game after having suffered five outright defeats in the six matches they have played so far.

Central to Railways' plans would be Wakaskar, who has already batted for nearly six hours. By his own admission, he has taken a while to settle down in the side, but ever since there has been more "gelling" - he repeats this word often, for emphasis - within the team, his performances have begun to improve. Wakaskar, 24, is the team's leading scorer so far, with 554 runs from 14 innings, including three fifties and a hundred.

"Initially, it took me time to adjust," Wakaskar said. "They [the players] were all new and we did not know one another. As time went on, and with more gelling, things started becoming better. I stayed with the rest of the team during the off-season camp and started opening up. I did not have to do anything different. They started knowing me better and vice-versa."

Wakaskar said there was no "special" reason [behind him making the switch from Baroda], except that he was required by Railways to join their side this season. "My job is here and obviously I had to come here. I was expecting to play for a year more with the state side [Baroda], but that did not happen. Railways wanted me to play here and take Railways to a good level."

He, however, cited an absence of "team effort", as the reason for their batting failure this season - having crossed 300 just once. "Our team effort is not up to the mark, so we are not doing well this year. Actually, we did really well last year and last to last year we qualified for the quarters and all. This year I think team effort is not that much."

According to Wakaskar, while there was not any change in the role he played, the Baroda camp boasted of a greater number of experienced players. "There are a lot more experienced players and India-level players there. Here, too, no doubt there are the likes of Karn Sharma and Anureet Singh. But, since I have played there from childhood there was a lot more gelling, and 'ease lagta tha' [I would feel more at ease]. In Railways, this is my first year, so as time goes on, I will start adjusting better," he said.

Wakaskar refused to believe, however, that playing for a weaker side - Railways sit at the bottom of Group B and are in danger of relegation - would hamper his own growth. "I personally think it doesn't matter [whether] it's Baroda or Railways, we are playing at the same level, ultimately playing the Ranji Trophy only."

"If I perform well, I will get recognition wherever I play. If I don't, it doesn't matter which team I turn out for. So it depends on how I perform and how my season is progressing."

Before this innings, Wakaskar had made 1885 runs from 49 innings at an average of 40.97. He conceded that he was far from satisfied with the way his career had shaped so far.

"The more you score, the less it is. This season I had a few particular goals, but I couldn't quite achieve them," he said. "But, this innings has turned out to be a big one, and that makes me feel good."