Mumbai, Nov. 9 -- In the last IPL, Musheer Khan endured an awkward moment. Trusted by Punjab Kings head coach Ricky Ponting to prevent a batting free fall in the qualifier against RCB, the rookie, as Impact Player, only managed an uncomfortable three-ball stay. But anyone who has watched the younger of the Khan siblings - Sarfaraz, 28, is eight years older - bat knows red-ball cricket is more his forte. Playing out balls, playing out sessions, is what Musheer is most adept at. Musheer brought his long-format batting temperament to the fore on Saturday to score a patient hundred against Himachal Pradesh on Day 1 of the Elite Group D Ranji Trophy tie at the Sharad Pawar academy ground. The other Mumbai top order batters - Ayush Mhatre (9), Ajinkya Rahane (2) and Sarfaraz (16) - fell early to Himachal pacers, but Musheer kept scoring. "It's my favourite ground. I have scored a lot of runs here, so I knew the wicket would get easier to bat after lunch," said Musheer, who scored 112 off 162 and raised a 157-run fifth wicket partnership with fellow centurion Siddhesh Lad (100 batting). To bat with an understanding of the idiosyncrasies of a ground is something Musheer knows best, having batted at the odd-shaped maidans of Mumbai. While sticking to the virtues of not throwing the wicket away, batting long, which helped bring up his fourth first-class ton, Musheer wasn't shy of deviating from the conventional when it came to technique. "I play a lot of balls. But my mindset is not to let the bowler settle," he said. "If the bowler gets into rhythm, he becomes better. I step out, try not to overdo it, but once in an over to disturb his length." With Lad, the duo bailed Mumbai out and reached 289/5, after being 73/4. For Musheer, sidelined by a neck injury for the entire last season, to get his first hundred after the one he scored in the 2023-24 final for Mumbai in a winning cause was emotional. Also, because he batted after coming to know that his maternal uncle, with whom he spent a lot of time while growing up, had passed away in the morning. Brief Scores: In New Delhi: Delhi 211 in 69 overs (A Doseja 65, A Badoni 64; A Nabi 5/35) vs J&K 31/3 (S Singh 3/14); In Mumbai: Mumbai 289/5 in 88 overs (M Khan 112, S Lad 100*, A Guleria 2/56) vs HP....