KL Rahul waited patiently for the end-of-day fist-bump routine between the two not out batters, then walked up to Musheer Khan and extended his hand in congratulation. It was an acknowledgement by a man with 50 Test appearances of the mind-over-matter display of a 19-year-old who had single-handedly prevented his team’s complete meltdown at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Thursday.

The opening day of the Duleep Trophy season was dominated by the India ‘A’ bowlers, who took a little while to justify Shubman Gill’s decision to field, but then cut a swathe through the India ‘B’ batting. But as wickets tumbled around him, Musheer held firm, showcasing a maturity beyond his years and batting according to the conditions to eke out an excellent third first-class century.