Mumbai further bolstered their tag of domestic super heavyweights as they annexed their 42nd Ranji Trophy title on Thursday by overcoming Vidarbha’s challenge.
Mumbai’s unmatched dominance — Karnataka/Mysore, who are second on the list of Ranji titles won, are way behind with just 8 in their bag — had been on the wane in recent years as they had last won the title in the 2015-16 season. But this time they were determined not to go empty-handed from their 48th final in the 90 years of the tournament’s history.
They held firm their grip on the game to crush Vidarbha by 169 runs on the fifth and final day of the match.
The fate of the final was almost sealed when Mumbai set their opponents a mountain of a target — 538 runs. But an ambitious Vidarbha were not going down without a fight as captain Akshay Wadkar (102) and the unheralded Harsh Dubey (65) kept Mumbai at bay for the entire first session on the last day after Vidarbha resumed on 248/5, needing another 290 runs to win.
But the resistance was taken down thereafter as Vidarbha were bowled out for 368.
Together, Wadkar and Dubey forged the longest stand of the innings, consuming 255 balls in 194 minutes. Wadkar fell shortly after lunch, leg-before off Tanush Kotian (4/95), and once the pair was broken, it all ended in a jiffy for Vidarbha who have now lost the Ranji Trophy final for a third time after winning two titles.
Pacer Tushar Deshpande used the short ball to good effect to dismiss Dubey and Aditya Sarwate.
Off-spinner Kotian cleaned up Yash Thakur (6) for his fourth wicket, while veteran Dhawal Kulkarni, who was playing his last first-class game, deservingly took the final wicket of the match in the form of Umesh Yadav.
Mumbai skipper Ajinkya Rahane praised Vidarbha for their gritty display. Considering the fact that they were dismissed for just 105 in the first innings, Vidarbha indeed did a commendable job of challenging Mumbai and taking the game into the final day.
Vidarbha skipper Wadkar said giving up was never an option even after they were set an almost impossible target. “When we spoke in the huddle and about partnerships, not for once did we say that we were out of the game. We were only thinking about pulling it off as batters together,” Wadkar said after the match.
“It was a final, the last innings, so giving up and to think anything negative had
no scope at all. We were talking about winning only,” Wadkar added.
Praising Mumbai, Wadkar said: “The way Mumbai batted in the second innings, they showed a lot of determination and courage. We tried to take wickets or create chances but they gave nothing for us to come back in the game.”
