Kolkata: Tamil Nadu's Vijay Shankar added much-needed life into an otherwise boring batting display, with an unbeaten half-century on the opening day of their semifinal against Maharashtra in the Ranji Trophy tournament here today.

Opting to bat on a dull Eden Gardens strip, Tamil Nadu's star studded batting line-up scored at snail's pace until Shankar hit some strokes en route to his 97-ball unbeaten 56, to end the day on 192 for three in 87 overs.