Ranji Trophy
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BCCI’s technical committee’s recommendations
The Times of India, May 30 2016
Home advantage in Ranji Trophy could be a thing of the past from the upcoming season as the Board of Control for Cricket in India's (BCCI) technical committee has recommended to hold the matches of its premier domestic championship at neutral venues.
The decision, taken during the meeting, will deny the home teams an opportunity to tamper with pitches according to their strengths. The Sourav Ganguly-chaired committee felt the concept would give domestic players experience in varied conditions. BCCI president Anurag Thakur and secretary Ajay Shirke too attended the meeting.
“In a bid to make domestic cricket more competitive and rule out issues related to preparing specific wickets for home teams, as well as to expose players to playing in different conditions, the BCCI technical committee has recommended neutral venues for the Ranji Trophy matches,“ the BCCI said in state ment.
In another major change, the Duleep Trophy will return to the first-class cricket calendar this season (2016-17) in a new avatar. The tournament, traditionally played by the five zonal teams, will be a four-team affair in the upcoming season. The tournament will be a daynight affair and will be played in a roundrobin format, the release stated. It is learnt that all matches will be played with kookaburra balls.
The technical committee's recommendations will now be tabled at the BCCI working committee for approval.
Meanwhile, the committee has cleared India A's tour of Australia in August.The team is expected to play two four-day matches and a tri-series. It has emerged that the board is likely to hold talks with New Zealand Cricket for an away series for India `A'.
In the National Cricket Academy committee meeting, the members were updated about the assessment of all the ongoing zonal camps in various age groups and the umpires' refresher course.Members were also briefed about the physiotherapist and trainers course to be conducted by the NCA next month.Physios and trainers of all the state associations will be attending this course.
Finals
Major milestones, as in Dec 2017
From The Times of India
See graphic, 'Ranji Trophy finals: Major milestones, as in Dec 2017 '
The Teams that won the most titles, till 2024
From: March 16, 2024: The Times of India
See graphic:
Most Ranji titles, State-wise, as on March 16, 2024
Statistics, year-wise
2017: Gujarat beats Mumbai
Gaurav Gupta, Jan 15 2017: The Times of India
When Gujarat's Chirag Gandhi smashed Mumbai pacer Shardul Thakur past point to the fence, he didn't just score the winning runs in the Ranji Trophy final-he also created history.
For the first time, Gujarat had clinched India's premier domestic championship. And that too vanquishing 41-time winner Mumbai, the most suc cessful team ever. The Davids had humbled the Goliaths.
Gujarat was playing a Ranji final after 66 years and the unthinkable was accomplished, primarily via skipper Parthiv Patel's brilliant 143 and middle-order batter Manprit Juneja's invaluable support act (54) as the team chased down 312 on Saturday , the last day of the match. Patel, who had hit 90 in the first innings, was declared the player of the match.
It is believed that Gujarat Cricket Association (GCA) boss Amit Shah was keenly following the score.
The redemption took a long time coming. In a case of tremendous irony , it was on this very ground, Holkar Stadium, that Gujarat lost the Ranji summit clash of 1950-51 to Holkar by 189 runs.
That Gujarat's finest cricketing moment came on the festive occasion of Uttarayan (kite flying), also celebrated as Makar Sankranti, made the triumph sweeter for Gujaratis. It isn't easy to beat Mumbai in a Ranji Trophy final. The last time the defending champions lost a Ranji final was almost a quarter of a century back in the 1990-91 season, when Haryana edged them out by two runs in a thriller.
2017-18
The leading batsmen and bowlers
leading wicket-takers in Ranji Trophy matches, 2017-18
From [ The Times of India ]
From [ The Times of India ]
See graphics:
Ranji Trophy, 2017-18: Factoids
Leading run-getters, leading wicket-takers in Ranji Trophy matches, 2017-18
Delhi enters Ranji Trophy final after 2008
From: Archiman Bhaduri, Delhi enters Ranji Trophy final after 10 yrs, December 20, 2017: The Times of India
In January 2008, then skipper Gautam Gambhir smashed an unbeaten 130 as Delhi strolled to a nine-wicket victory against Uttar Pradesh in the Ranji Trophy final. Few could have imagined then that Delhi would not play another final for a decade.
In the intervening years, Delhi cricket often found itself engulfed in controversy and the team struggled to recapture its past glory, even as bright young stars kept appearing every now and then.
One of those stars, Navdeep Saini, was spotted bowling in a tennis-ball tournament by former Delhi player Sumit Narwal (who had himself played in the 2008 Ranji final). An excited Narwal called up Gambhir, who was sufficiently impressed by what he saw in the nets to push Saini into the playing XI.
The 25-year-old Saini amply repaid the faith shown in him, taking 4 wickets for 35 runs to rip through the Bengal batting line-up and bowl Delhi to victory by an innings and 26 runs — and its first Ranji final in 10 years. Saini, who consistently bowled at 140kmph, finished with 7 wickets for the game to bag the man of the match award.
Pacers give Delhi innings win over Bengal
Saini, Khejroliya End Team’s Long Wait To Make The Final
Gautam Gambhir may no longer be captain but remains a key member of the Delhi team, top-scoring with 127 to drive the side to a winning position. He is the sole player from the last Ranji-winning Delhi squad who’s playing for the team this year (Shikhar Dhawan, the only other survivor of the Class of 2008, is on India duty).
And Gambhir he remains a major influence in the dressing room, as revealed by Sani, who was supposed to go to South Africa as a net bowler for the India side but decided not to on Gambhir’s advice. “I was happy that I would go to South Africa but when I called up Gautam bhaiyya, he said Delhi needs you now for the semifinal and if you do well, you will be automatically be in that Indian dressing room someday,” said Saini, whose grandfather, Karam Singh, was a driver in Subhas Chandra Bose’s Azad Hind Fauj.
If Saini’s performance is anything to go by, an India call-up may not be too far away.
Saini was ably backed up by Kulwant Khejroliya, who took 4/40 on a day that saw 17 wickets tumble, ending the five-day match on the third day itself. The Bengal batsmen panicked in the face of some raw pace and were bowled out for 86 in 24.4 overs, nullifying the lionhearted effort of Mohammad Shami.
The India pacer, who was playing his last match before flying out to South Africa next week, bowled his heart out to claim 6 for 122 as Delhi were restricted to 398, a lead of 112 runs only.
With plenty of time and plenty to play for, the stage was set for an intriguing contest. But Saini and Khejroliya turned it into a one-sided show.
Vikas Tokas provided the first breakthrough before walking off injured. He had opener Abhishek Raman trapped in front in the third over of the innings. Then, Abhimanyu Easwaran failed to capitalise on a dropped chance as he played to the same fielder (Kunal Chandela) in the very next ball off Khejroliya.
It was time for Saini to get into his special act. He immediately dislodged Sudip Chatterjee’s stumps, beating the batsman with sheer pace.
To make matters worse, Writtick Chatterjee (1) was run out due to a terrible mix-up with skipper Manoj Tiwary while going for the second run on an overthrow. As both batsmen found themselves at the same end, Chatterjee sacrificed his wicket by leaving the crease. But his sacrifice did not earn any dividends as Tiwary was soon castled by Saini with one that held its line to go past the batsman’s outside edge and hit the top of off stump.
Saini then struck on consecutive deliveries, removing Aamir Goni and B Amit, both being clean bowled. While the former shouldered arms to an inswinger that saw his off-stump dislodged, Amit was beaten by pace.
Brief scores: Delhi 398 (Gambhir 127, Chandela 113, Himmat 60, Shami 6-122) beat Bengal 286 (Sudip 83, Saini 3-55) and 86 (Saini 4-35, Khejroliya 4-40) by an innings and 26 runs
Delhi Vs Vidarbha, December 2017
Arani Basu, December 29, 2017: The Times of India
From: Arani Basu, December 29, 2017: The Times of India
It’s Delhi Vs Vidarbha As Ranji Final Marks Growing Competition In Domestic Circuit
“It has been an extended season for both the teams here.” Delhi coach KP Bhaskar was only talking tongue in cheek, but he delivered the underlining statement ahead of the Ranji Trophy final between his young team and Vidarbha from Friday. These are untested waters for both sides. Delhi last lifted the trophy back in 2007-08, while Vidarbha have never made it this far in five decades of playing first-class cricket.
But then, this has been the trend in the Ranji Trophy over the last decade — throwing up unexpected finalists. Rajasthan started it and repeated it. The likes of Maharashtra, Saurashtra and Gujarat followed suit. This final, though, is a bit different. The MPCA Holkar Stadium will hosts two teams which were not expected to come this far. The usual talk about conditions, pitch and team combinations was benched for the day as the occasion dominated proceedings.
There will only be three players out of the 22 on the two team sheets who know the feel of holding the trophy aloft — Gautam Gambhir, Wasim Jaffer and Ganesh Satish. In effect, these two teams are underdogs who have elbowed their way to the top of the heap this season. Now they are ready to flaunt their canines.
“We’re already thinking of the Irani Cup. That’s not looking too ahead,” Vidarbha captain Faiz Fazal asserted on Thursday. “I’ve never experienced the feel of holding the Ranji Trophy. But we believe we can’t lose this. This approach got us over the line against Karnataka in the semifinal,” he added.
Fazal understands Delhi’s seven Ranji titles is now just a part of history. But seven remains a compelling number for Bhaskar and has played a vital part in prepping the team. “Bhaskar sir tells us how strong the team was during their days. How they tackled difficult situations during their campaigns,” said Rishabh Pant, a 20-year-old who is captaining Delhi in only his second full first-class season.
You soon realise what Pant implies. Bhaskar, a canny veteran of the domestic circuit, reminded: “Vidarbha have got three professionals playing for them. We have a history. They are a bit inexperienced in these situations.”
‘Professionals’ becomes the operative word here. The emergence of the so-called fringe teams in Ranji Trophy has had to do with BCCI allowing players to switch states as professionals. Rajasthan did it with the services of Aakash Chopra and Hrishikesh Kanitkar. Gujarat had used RP Singh in the last two seasons and now Vidarbha have got Jaffer to lend weight to their campaign. And you can’t tear your eyes away from the presence of another Mumbai strongman, Chandrakant Pandit, as Vidarbha’s coach.
“It helps with professionals coming on board. They have the experience and they guide the youngsters well. That surely makes a lot of difference in how teams grow,” Fazal reasoned. Delhi have their inherent brash and unapologetic culture to rally around. Vidarbha, meanwhile, have tried to instill a professional culture in the team.
Vidarbha beat Delhi to win first Ranji title
January 1, 2018: The Times of India
HIGHLIGHTS
Chasing a target of 29, Vidarbha completed the task with loss of skipper Faiz Fazal's wicket
Opting to field, Vidarbha bowled out Delhi for 295 in the first innings with Rajneesh Gurbani picking up six wickets
In reply, Vidarbha notched up a mammoth 547 all out, as Akshay Wadkar struck his maiden century in first-class cricket
Vidarbha claimed their maiden Ranji Trophy after beating Delhi by nine wickets in the final of India's premier domestic tournament here on Monday.
Chasing a target of 29, Vidarbha completed the task with loss of skipper Faiz Fazal's wicket.
Opting to field, Vidarbha bowled out Delhi for 295 in the first innings with Rajneesh Gurbani picking up six wickets.
In reply, Vidarbha notched up a mammoth 547 all out, as Akshay Wadkar struck his maiden century in first-class cricket.
Overnight Vidarbha were 528 for seven with wicketkeeper Wadkar unbeaten on 133, but Delhi quickly picked up the remaining three wickets in the morning.
Young pacer Navdeep Saini was the most successful bowler for Delhi, returning figures of 5 for 135 after bowling a marathon 36.3 overs.
Delhi were a bowler short through the Vidarbha first innings as left-arm spinner Manan Sharma remained off the field due to a knee injury. Manan, though, batted in the second innings.
In their second innings, Delhi were all out for 280 with Shorey scoring another half-century - a 142-ball 62 - while Nitish Rana struck 64.
Vidarbha chased down the 29-run target with a day to spare at the Holkar Stadium, which hosted the title clash of the tournament for the second successive time.
Trailing by 252 runs, Delhi lost opener Kunal Chandela with just 32 runs on the board. And a bigger blow was dealt on the seven-time winners when their most experienced campaigner, Gautam Gambhir, in what looked like a debatable decision, was adjudged out lbw off Gurbani to a ball that seemed to be heading down the leg side.
The out-of-favour India opener looked in good touch during his quick 36 off 37 balls (32 coming in boundaries), and could have helped Delhi's cause had he stayed longer.
First-innings centurion Shorey and Rana then added 114 runs for the third wicket.
The second session saw Shorey and Rana playing freely, hitting some lovely drives and flicks. However, as the team score reached 164, Delhi lost Shorey, who was given a reprieve by Wasim Jaffer in first slip, to the left-arm spin of Aditya Sarwate.
Rana followed suit as he nicked the impressive Gurbani to Wadkar behind the stumps. Like in the first innings, Gurbani was again bowling his heart out and swung the new ball to good effect.
Himmat Singh, who had a fifty in the first essay, was bowled by off-spinner Akshay Wakhare before he could open his account.
And then came a reckless shot by skipper Rishabh Pant (32), an attempted heave off Siddhesh Neral leading to his dismissal as Delhi ran out of batting options. This was an over after Pant was let off by Wadkar, who missed an easy stumping chance.
2019: Vidarbha win finals again
Sandeep Dabhekar, VIDARBHA CHAMPIONS AGAIN, February 8, 2019: The Times of India
Beat Saurashtra By 78 Runs To Clinch Second Ranji Title On The Trot
With another triumph, Vidarbha further extended their dominance in the domestic circuit. It took the spin pair of Aditya Sarvate and Akshay Wakhare just about two hours to finish off Saurashtra on Day 5 as Faiz Fazal & Co clinched their second successive Ranji Trophy with a 78-run victory.
Saurashtra started the day with a daunting task ahead of them. They were five down and in need of 148 more runs on a tricky pitch. The two overnight batsmen, Vishvarajsinh Jadeja and Kamlesh Makwana, managed to keep Vidarbha bowlers at bay for almost 12 overs. But once Sarvate, Man of the Match, cleaned up Makwana, with the Saurashtra score on 88, the end came swiftly. Fittingly, it was Sarvate who pouched the catch of Dharmendrasinh Jadeja that ended Saurashtra’s essay.
The win proved that last year’s historic first title wasn’t a fluke. “A few years back, people used to ask ‘Vidarbha…yeh kaha padta hain?’ It’s good that we have put Vidarbha on the cricketing map of the country,” paceman Umesh Yadav said after the triumph on Thursday.
It were not just the outsiders who had no clue about Vidarbha or the region’s cricketing abilities. Even those from the fold didn’t believe in the team.
Subroto Bannerjee was the first who saw the potential. “We want to win trophies,” the bowling coach had said on October 13, 2017, a day before Vidarbha’s season opener against Punjab.
He had a talisman, head coach Chandrakant Pandit, in the Vidarbha fold. The rest, as they say, is history. Over the next two seasons, Vidarbha have remained unconquered. Incidentally, the unbeaten run started with Vidarbha’s eight-wicket win over Saurashtra in Nov, 2016. On Tuesday, Faiz & Co prevailed over the same opponent and their unbeaten run now stands at 24 matches.
“I knew how Chandrakant Pandit works. He has the ability to extract results from anyone. He is result-oriented. In the 1990s, during a Deodhar Trophy match I had first-hand experience of his motivational skills. I was batting with him and we needed some 80 more runs. He instilled such belief in me that I scored 50-odd runs and we won the match,” Banerjee told TOI on Thursday.
The first year under coach Pandit, Vidarbha hit the stride from the first match and continued in the same vein till the title was theirs.
But this year, things were different. Being the defending champions, they were the marked men. The pressure of expectations, the desire to prove that first win wasn’t a fluke…there was plenty to deal with. The title defence started on an ominous note. Maharashtra, after bundling out Vidarbha for 120, enforced the follow on. That’s when the fighting spirit of the team came to the fore. Faiz and Akshay Wadkar scored tons to ensure a draw. In fact, the first three matches were all draws, earning just five points.
The changed format made the knockout berth look even farther. Only top five of the 18 teams across Group ‘A’ & ‘B’ were to qualify for the quarters. However, with not many outright results happening in the two groups, Pandit kept them buoyed.
The coach judiciously picked his gang. Excess baggage was left out. “Players who have played for Vidarbha for many years, were not finding a place in the team. We made sure the team had combination of youth and experience. Many times, we had to take a call to drop even senior players,” Pandit said after Thursday’s triumph.
Soon, as predicted by Pandit, the tide turned. A bonus in Chhattisgarh and a six-pointer against Railways got Vidarbha back on track. A draw against Gujarat was followed by innings thumping of Mumbai. That sealed the top spot in the group for Vidarbha.
The juggernaut was truly on the march and there was no stopping Vidarbha now.
Brief scores: Vidarbha 312 & 200 beat Saurashtra 307 & 127 (Vishvaraj 52; Sarwate 6-59) by 78 runs
2020: Saurashtra beats Bengal in final
Archiman Bhaduri, March 14, 2020: The Times of India
A new name was added to the list of Ranji Trophy winners as Saurashtra claimed their maiden title on first-innings lead against Bengal after the final at SCA Stadium ended in a draw.
It was a moment Saurashtra cricket had been waiting for after having emerged second-best thrice in the Ranji final in the last eight seasons.
As for Bengal, their wait to lift the coveted trophy for the first time since 1989-90 got longer.
The match went down to the wire, but Saurashtra skipper Jaydev Unadkat led from the front — as he did throughout the season — when it mattered most. The left-arm seamer picked up two wickets and ran out Akash Deep as Bengal ended their first innings at 381, thereby conceding a lead of 44 runs. The Saurashtra bowlers, who looked tired towards the end of Day 4, came hard at Bengal on the fifth morning with the match evenly poised and Bengal needing 72 runs to take the decisive lead.
Quite, fittingly, Unadkat — the season’s highest wickettaker — brought the curtains down on the Bengal innings by claiming Ishan Porel leg before. An ecstatic and emotional Unadkat lay flat on the ground as his teammates went berserk in celebration. But with the final day being played behind closed doors, Saurashtra fans missed out on the chance to witness history.
Bengal were all out after adding just 27 runs in an hour and 10 minutes of play in the morning. Although Bengal coach Arun Lal walked into the rival dressing room immediately after the hosts took the lead to congratulate counterpart Karsan Ghavri, the Saurashtra boys had to wait for a few more hours to lay their hands on the trophy — after the teams decided to call off play at tea with the home team at 105 for four in their second innings.
“This is the biggest moment of my career,” Unadkat said. “It’s not just my achievement, but my state’s achievement,” he added.
Brief scores
Saurashtra: 425 all out and 101-4. Bengal: 381 all out
Numbers Game
RAJESH KUMAR
1 Saurashtra won their first Ranji title after a 73-year wait. Their first Ranji match was (as Kathiawar) vs Gujarat in Rajkot in December 1946. Saurashtra had lost three previous finals - 2012-13 & 2015-16 to Mumbai and 2018-19 to Vidarbha
67 No of wickets at 13.23 runs apiece in 10 matches by Jaydev Unadkat, a new record by a pacer in a Ranji season, and the second highest tally ever behind Bihar’s Ashutosh Aman’s 68 (ave 6.48) in eight matches in the 2018-19 season
2022: MP wins
Manuja Veerappa, June 27, 2022: The Times of India
Bengaluru: Redemption comes to those who wait, and for Madhya Pradesh, it was a long-drawn one that spanned 23 years. When they laid hands on their maiden Ranji Trophy, they did it in some style against an opposition that fought and threatened until the last session on the final day. Whether it was through a quirk of fate or just destiny, MP registered a six-wicket victory over Mumbai at the M Chinnaswamy stadium — a venue where they played their first title clash, and lost, to hosts Karnataka. Chandrakant Pandit, then captain and now coach of the team, was stoic throughout this match, but broke down when Rajat Patidar (30 n. o, 37b, 4x4) brought up the victory. It was a nervy one, despite Madhya Pradesh’s firm grip on the match. While the rest of the team rushed to join Patidar and skipper Aditya Shrivastava in the middle, Pandit looked up at the sky, lips moving in prayer, and allowed the moment to sink in before he jogged over to join the team. It was his sixth Ranji Trophy title as coach, having guided Mumbai thrice and Vidarbha twice to the crown. It has been a season of dominance for Madhya Pradesh, who won outright four of the five matches they played en route to the final. Individual brilliance was amalgamated with team spirit, a combination that proved too deadly for 41-time champions Mumbai. The hunger to win was evident as the team arrived in the city three weeks before the knockouts to acclimatise and get some game time, which included a practice match against Karnataka. Pre-match favourites Mumbai will rue missed opportunities, especially the dismissal of Patidar off a no-ball when he was on 52 in the first innings. He went on to add 70 more runs, which proved to be a game changer. Mumbai were bowled out for 269 in 57. 3 overs in their second innings, which meant MP needed a mere 108 runs to win – not enough to ensure a miracle win for Mumbai but big enough for MP not to take the chase lightly. With shouts of “jeetega bhai jeetega, MP jeetega” ema- nating from one heavily populated stand, MP openers Himanshu Mantri (37) and Yash Dubey walked out to help their team surmount the final hurdle. Pacer Dhawal Kulkarni offered Mumbai some hope when he sent Dubey’s middle stump cartwheeling in the second over to leave MP at 2/1. That hope turned into an opening when Mantri and Parth Sahani were sent back in quick succession. With MP at 66/3, and 42 runs away, Mumbai perhaps smelled a gen- uine opportunity to turn the match on its head, but Patidar, who finished the season as the team’s highest run-getter with 658, quickly restored MP to the driving seat. MP’s victory parade was held up when Shubham Sharma (30) was dismissed with seven runs required, but the interval was brief. When Mumbai resumed from their overnight 113/2, there could have been only one plan — get a heap of runs in quick time and subject MP to some pressure. It didn’t pan out that way.
2023: Saurashtra wins
Archiman Bhaduri, February 20, 2023: The Times of India
Kolkata : Jaydev Unadkat will always hold a special place in Saurashtra cricket. The left-arm pacer, who returned to lead the side in the Ranji Trophy final after being released from the India camp, played a pivotal role to help the side clinch its second title in three seasons at the Eden Gardens here on Saturday. In a repeat of the result of the 2020 final back home in Rajkot, Saurashtra defeated Bengal by nine wickets just before the lunch interval on Day IV to lift their second title this season after the Vijay Hazare Trophy.
The tiny window of hope that Bengal had while staging a comeback evaporated when they lost overnight unbeaten batter Shahbaz Ahmed to a horrible mix-up with skipper Manoj Tiwary in the middle, who erred in calling for a non-existent third run in the sixth over of the morning. The run out of Shahbaz on 27 rang the death knell for Bengal, who lost three more wickets inthe next six overs.
Saurashtra skipper Jaydev Unadkat once again showed the way by having his Bengal counterpart Tiwary caught, much like in the first innings, at gully by Vishvarajsinh Jadeja for 68, which came off 154 balls with the help of 10 boundaries.
Wicketkeeper-batter Abishek Porel departed without putting up any resistance, pulling Chetan Sakariya to deep squareleg in the very next over. Unadkat got rid of Akash Deep andAkash Ghatak in quick succession as Bengal stared at an innings defeat.
However, the hosts’ last pair of Ishan Porel and Mukesh Kumar used the long handle well to collect 36 runs, which made Saurashtra bat again. Although they lost opener Jay Gohil to Mukesh Kumar, Harvik Desai hit the winning runs in 2. 4 overs to the take the team home. Unadkat ended with six wickets in the second innings and nine in the match to be namedthe ‘player-of-the-match’. Middle-order batter Arpit Vasavada, who led the side in a few matches in Unadkat’s absence, ended up as the season’s second-highest run-getter (907) to be adjudged the ‘player of the tournament’.
Saurashtra skipper Unadkat dedicated the title to his teammate and one of Saurashtra cricket’s greatest stars ever Cheteshwar Pujara, who hit the winning runs against Australia in his milestone 100th Test in New Delhi.
“It’s a fitting tribute to Chintu (Pujara). Even while playing his 100th Test for India, he was equally eager, wishing us all throughout,” Unadkat said. “Three trophies in three years proves that we have been doing a lot of things right. It was down to playing better cricket, and that’s what we did in four days. ”
BRIEF SCORES: Bengal 174 and 241 in 70. 4 overs (Manoj Tiwary 68, Anustup Majumdar 61; Jaydev Unadkat 6/85, Chetan Sakariya 3/76) lost to Saurashtra 404 and 14/1 in 2. 4 overs.
2024
Mumbai wins
Gaurav Gupta, March 16, 2024: The Times of India
Mumbai: Farewells can turn into fairytales too. Drafted into the XI at the last minute for the Ranji Trophy final against Vidarbha at the Wankhede Stadium after he sat out for most of the season, Dhawal Kulkarni played his part in a send-off which was so perfect that it seemed scripted.
After taking 3 for 15 in the first innings with some quality bowling, Kulkarni ended up taking the final wicket of Vidarbha’s innings too with the last ball of his First-Class career when he cleaned up Umesh Yadav’s stumps as the batsman went for a big heave, triggering wild celebrations in the Mumbai team and fans, of Ranji Trophy title No 42. Soon after last strike handed Mumbai a 169-run win over a resolute Vidarbha on Day 5 of the final, Kulkarni looked skywards, thanking the heavens, before breaking into tears and hugging his teammates, who would later hoist the veteran pacer on their shoulders. Coming after an agonizing wait of seven seasons, which saw two defeats in the final, this triumph, fittingly coming at home, was heart-warming for Mumbai’s supporters.
A unique feature of this team is that, unlike the Mumbai sides of the past, only captain Ajinkya Rahane, Kulkarni, Shreyas Iyer and Shardul Thakur were a part of Ranjiwinning sides before this win.
Incidentally, of the 13 Ranji finals at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai have won 11. Rahane became the 26th Mumbai captain to hold the trophy. In 89 editions of the tournament, Mumbai have played in 48 finals.
Rahane, though, rightly doffed his hat to Vidarbha for turning this final into an engrossing battle after they looked dead and buried when they were skittled out for just 105 on Day 2 morning. Chasing a mammoth 538-run target, Vidarbha were, against all odds, kept in the game by their gallant captain Akshay Wadkar (102, 199b, 9x4, 1x6) and his 130-run, 255-ball partnership for the sixth wicket with the equally brave Harsh Dubey (65, 128b, 5x4, 2x6). When play resumed on the final day, Vidarbha, 248 for five, needed 290, but after the duo added 85 in 33 overs before lunch, that target was whittled down to 205, and you thought that the impossible was possible. However, once Wadkar was trapped lbw by off-spinner Tanush Kotian, who emerged Mumbai’s final-day hero with four for 48, Vidarbha suffered a collapse, losing their last five wickets for 15 runs in 31 balls. Dubey and the injured veteran left-arm spinner Aditya Sarwate, whose inability to bowl hurt Vidarbha badly, were both snared by short deliveries by Tushar Deshpande (2-53).
In an award which will hopefully boost his chances of breaking into the India A team, Kotian was adjudged as the ‘Player of the Tournament.’ Scoring 501 runs in 10 matches @41.83 besides taking 29 wickets @16.96, Kotian played a stellar role in Mumbai’s triumph.
The ‘Player of the Final’ award went to Musheer Khan, who slammed a match-deciding 136 in the second innings, besides taking two for 48 (including the wicket of Karun Nair) during Vidarbha’s epic chase.
BRIEF SCORES: Mumbai: 224 & 418 beat Vidarbha 105 & 368 (K Nair 74, A Wadkar 102; T Kotian 4/95) by 169 runs.
Players of note
Manuja Veerappa, March 16, 2024: The Times of India
Mumbai ended their eightyear wait for their 42nd Ranji Trophy title, while Tamil Nadu made the knockouts after eight years. In a season during which no batsman crossed 1000 runs, young Turks took centrestage, while seasoned campaigners like Cheteshwar Pujara, Ricky Bhui, Jalaj Saxena and Sachin Baby showcased redhot form. Spinners called the shots, but medium pacers like Shardul Thakur and Vyshak Vijaykumar made a statement with their all-round abilities. TOI put together a Sai Kishore-led Ranji Trophy XI, with focus on players who could go the distance in red-ball cricket...
N Jagadeesan (TN)
At the beginning of the season, the Tamil Nadu opener was jostling for a place in the team, but he sealed the deal with an unbeaten double century (245 n.o.) against Railways and upped the ante with a triple hundred (321) against Chandigarh in the ensuing match. The wicketkeeperbat’s form did slip in the knockouts, but he played a crucial role in ensuring his team’s entry into the quarterfinals with 816 runs in nine matches. The 28 dismissals as a wicketkeeper too cannot be overlooked.
Devdutt Padikkal (Kar)
Starting the season with a 193 against Punjab, the southpaw was in sensational form throughout the season. The opener scored 556 runs – including three centuries-in four matches for Karnataka. The 23-year-old rightly earned an India ‘A’ and subsequently a maiden India call-up into the Test squad.
Musheer Khan (Mum)
Three matches, 443 runs including an unbeaten double hundred (203 n.o.) — Musheer Khan carried forward his form from the U-19 World Cup into the Mumbai team. The top-order bat, who is also a handy spinner, turned things around for Mumbai in the knockouts and was among the brightest prospects to emerge this season.
Shashwat Rawat (Baroda)
Baroda may have returned a mixed bag with their quarterfinals exit against Mumbai, but not before a young Shashwat Rawat showcased his batting prowess. The 22-year-old left-hand bat had a breakthrough season with 784 runs from eight matches which included four centuries and two half centuries.
Akshay Wadekar (Vidarbha)
When you think of captain’s who led from the front in the domestic circuit, one of the first names that comes to mind is Vidarbha skipper Akshay Wadkar. The 29-year-old was among the best wicketkeeper-batters this season. Apart from the 637 runs he scored, he also had 24 dismissals behind the stumps to his credit, which included 22 catches and two stumpings.
Sai Kishore (Captain; TN)
Much has been said about Sai Kishore’s decision to bat first against Mumbai in the semifinals, even if it was an error of judgement, it is collective responsibility. But the 27-year-old has walked the talk as a leader claiming 53 wickets with his left- arm spin—the highest this season. This apart, the lanky cricketer also contributed with two half centuries.
Shardul Thakur (Mum)
Five matches 255 runs and 16 wickets, the bowling allrounder stood up to be counted at the most crucial junctures during Mumbai’s journey to the title. When the chips were down in the final against Vidarbha, he came up with a counterattacking 69-ball 75, this after a defining century against Tamil Nadu in the semifinals.
Shams Mulani (Mum)
Over the past few seasons, left-arm spinner Shams Mulani has had a telling impact in domestic cricket. The 27-year- old was one of the key architects of Mumbai’s win with 35 wickets at an average of 24.62 and 353 runs which was highlighted by four half centuries. In the final, apart from spinning a web around the Vidarbha top order, his unbeaten 50 was the icing on the cake.
Mohit Avasthi (Mum)
A late bloomer with instant impact, the 31-year-old pacer unfortunately missed the finale for Mumbai, but he wreaked havoc before that. The 6 for 27 against Bihar early in the red-ball season turned out to be the trailer as he claimed sevenwicket hauls against Kerala and Bengal later in the competition. With 35 wickets, he finished as the highest wicket-taker for the champions.
Vyshak Vijaykumar (Kar)
While Karnataka had an indifferent tournament, which was halted by Vidarbha in the quarterfinals, mediumpacer Vyshak Vijaykumar had a breakthrough season. The Bengaluru youngster claimed 39 wickets—the second highest by a pacer in the competitionand contributed 343 runs to push his case for an all-rounders slot. In fact, he played a key role in ensuring the former champions made the knockouts.
Tanush Kotian (Mum)
The 25-year-old had a dream run this season and was fittingly adjudged the player of the tournament. The off spinner claimed 29 wickets at 16.96, while the showstopper for Mumbai contributed 502 runs with the willow. Against Baroda in the quarterfinals, Kotian (120) and Tushar Deshpande (123) became only the second number 10 and 11 batters in First-Class history to record tons in the same innings.
12th man: Ajith Ram (TN)
A regular in the Tamil Nadu Premier League, the 25-year-old took a while to move up the ranks and has established himself as the second-choice spinner with Sai Kishore in the lead. An old-school spinner, who enjoys long spells, collected 41 wickets with two five-wicket hauls.
Trivia
Stadium named after a current player
Bengal opener Abhimanyu Easwaran scored a century against Uttarakhand on the first day of the Ranji Trophy match being played at the stadium named after him: the Abhimanyu Cricket Academy Stadium, Dehradun, which was built by the batsman’s father. Kautilya.Singh
See also
Ranji Trophy
