Mumbai won their record-extending 42nd Ranji Trophy title on Thursday, defeating Vidarbha by 169 runs on the final day of the 2023-24 season.
Chasing a colossal 538-run target, Vidarbha put up a great fight with skipper Akshay Wadkar scoring a hundred, but Mumbai spinners ensured Vidarbha were bowled out for 368.
Vidarbha started the day with a score of 248/5. Both batters fought with grit and determination to battle out the entire first session and keep Vidarbha in the game.
Dubey reached a well-deserved half-century while Wadkar notched up a sublime century, tilting the game slightly in Vidarbha’s favor. However, Mumbai’s Tanush Kotian rose to the occasion, breaking the crucial 130-run partnership by dismissing Wadkar after trapping him leg-before-wicket.
Kotian trapped Wadkar in front of the stumps, ending his illustrious knock of 102. After the skipper’s dismissal, Vidarbha fell like a house of cards.
Dubey (65) got out in the next over, with Tushar Deshpande exploiting the uneven bounce and forcing out an edge from the batter.
In the next five overs, Vidarbha lost their remaining three wickets in quick succession, succumbing to a defeat by a big margin of 169 runs.
Kotian was Mumbai’s guiding light with the ball in the second innings as he registered figures of 4/95.
Earlier in the final, after Vidarbha won the toss and opted to bowl first on Sunday, Shardul Thakur (75) and Prithvi Shaw (46) played powerful knocks and propelled Mumbai to 224 (64.3 overs).
Meanwhile, Yash Thakur and Harsh Dubey spearheaded Vidarbha’s bowling attack by picking up three wickets each in their respective spells.
The defining moment of the game came when Vidarbha failed to stand tall in their first innings after Mumbai bundled them out within the 46th over for a score of 105.
Dhawal Kulkarni, Shams Mulani, and Tanush Kotian bagged three wickets each to help Mumbai get the upper hand on the final game. Atharva Taide (23) and Yash Rathod (27) were the standout batters for Vidarbha in the first innings.
Musheer Khan (136) and Shreyas Iyer (95) produced scintillating performances to power Mumbai to 418 after playing 131 overs in the second inning. While Harsh Dubey bagged five wickets and led Vidarbha’s bowling attack. Yash Thakur too picked up three wickets.
This is Mumbai’s first Ranji trophy win since 2015-16, a period in which Gujarat, Vidarbha (x2), Saurashtra (x2) and Madhya Pradesh have all lifted the trophy. Mumbai were the losing finalists in 2016-17 and 2021-22.
Brief Scores: Mumbai: 224 and 418 (Musheer Khan 136, Shreyas Iyer 95, Harsh Dubey 5/144) beat Vidarbha: 105 and 368 (Akshay Wadkar 102, Harsh Dubey 65; Tanush Kotian 4/95).
