The knockout stage of the Ranji Trophy 2024-25 kicks off on Saturday, with four high-stakes quarterfinals set to determine the semifinalists. Among the standout clashes, Mumbai takes on Haryana in Kolkata, while Jammu & Kashmir eyes history against Kerala in Pune. The other clashes include a Gujarat derby: Gujarat vs Saurashtra and Vidarbha vs Tamil Nadu.
Mumbai vs Haryana might not be as straightfoward
A decade after their last Ranji Trophy encounter, Mumbai and Haryana face off once again, this time with a semifinal berth at stake. Their last match was a famous one because it was Sachin Tendulkar’s last Ranji Trophy fixture. Mumbai, led by Ajinkya Rahane, had an inconsistent league stage but sealed their spot with a resounding win over Meghalaya. They needed help for J&K as well, who beat Baroda.
With seasoned campaigners like Suryakumar Yadav and Shivam Dube joining the squad, Mumbai’s batting gains a significant boost. Siddhesh Lad and Ayush Mhatre have been reliable with the bat, while all-rounder Shardul Thakur, with 381 runs and 24 wickets, remains a game-changer of course.
Haryana, on the other hand, topped their group and will rely on pacer Anshul Kambhoj, who has been a revelation with 29 wickets at an astounding average of 11.75. He even took a 10-wicket haul in an innings earlier this season. Anuj Thakral’s recent form (16 wickets in the last two matches) is also a sign of hope. With Nishant Sindhu and Jayant Yadav in the spin department, Haryana’s balanced bowling unit will look to exploit Mumbai’s occasional top-order fragility. The shift from Rohtak to Kolkata levels the playing field, but it might help Mumbai.
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Without Samson, can Kerala topple J&K?
Jammu & Kashmir have been the surprise package of the season, finishing atop Elite Group A with a historic win over Mumbai. Now, they stand on the cusp of their maiden Ranji Trophy semifinal. Their pace attack, featuring Auqib Nabi (38 wickets), Yudhvir Singh, and Umar Nazir, has been relentless, and off-spinner Sahil Lotra’s match-winning 11-wicket haul against Baroda underlines their bowling depth. However, the middle order remains a concern, with skipper Paras Dogra and Kanhaiya Wadhawan needing to step up.
Kerala, despite missing Sanju Samson, boasts a strong lineup with Salman Nizar (399 runs) and Shoun Roger anchoring the batting. Their experienced all-rounder Jalaj Saxena (33 wickets) will be crucial in Pune’s conditions. With seamers M.D. Nidheesh and N.P. Basil expected to exploit early movement, Kerala will back their experience to overpower J&K’s youthful exuberance. But J&K would be high on confidence and we can see history being created.
Elsewhere, Vidarbha’s Harsh Dubey (55 wickets) and Tamil Nadu’s N Jagadeesan (634 runs) are having a dream season and will go head-to-head in Nagpur. Meanwhile, Saurashtra’s Dharmendrasinh Jadeja and Gujarat’s Siddharth Desai are expected to shine in Rajkot.
Mumbai Ranji Trophy Squad
Ajinkya Rahane (Captain), Ayush Mhatre, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Amogh Bhatkal, Suryakumar Yadav, Siddhesh Lad, Shivam Dube, Akash Anand (WK), Hardik Tamore (WK), Suryansh Shedge, Shardul Thakur, Shams Mulani, Tanush Kotian, Mohit Avasthi, Sylvester Dsouza, Royston Dias, Atharva Ankolekar, Harsh Tanna.
Haryana Ranji Trophy Squad
Lakshhya Dalal, Ankit Kumar(c), Yuvraj Yogender Singh, Himanshu Rana, Nishant Sindhu, Dheeru Singh, Rohit Parmod Sharma(w), Jayant Yadav, Anshul Kamboj, Anuj Thakral, Ajit Chahal, Ashok Menaria, Yuzvendra Chahal, Harshal Patel, Aman Kumar, Kapil Hooda, Sumit Kumar, Mayank Shandilya
Jammu & Kashmir Ranji Trophy Squad
Shubham Khajuria, Yawer Hassan, Vivrant Sharma, Paras Dogra(c), Kanhaiya Wadhawan(w), Sahil Lotra, Lone Nasir Muzaffar, Abid Mushtaq, Auqib Nabi Dar, Umar Nazir Mir, Sunil Kumar, Abdul Samad, Yudhvir Singh Charak, Vanshaj Sharma, Shivansh Sharma, Umran Malik, Rasikh Dar Salam, Abhinav Puri, Rohit K Sharma, Shubham Pundir, Ahmed Banday
Kerala Ranji Trophy Squad
Akshay Chandran, Rohan Kunnummal, Anand Krishnan, Sachin Baby(c), Shoun Roger, Salman Nizar, Mohammed Azharuddeen(w), Jalaj Saxena, Aditya Sarwate, MD Nidheesh, Vaisakh Chandran, Baba Aparajith, Basil Thampi, Vishnu Vinod, KM Asif, Fazil Fanoos, Vathsal Govind, Nedumankuzhy Basil, Krishna Prasad
Vidarbha Ranji Trophy Squad
Atharva Taide, Dhruv Shorey, Danish Malewar, Karun Nair, Parth Rekhade, Yash Rathod, Akshay Wadkar(w/c), Harsh Dubey, Aditya Thakare, Yash Thakur, Akshay Wakhare, Aman Mokhade, Nachiket Bhute, Shubham Kapse, Umesh Yadav, Akshay Karnewar, Siddhesh Wath, Mandar Mahale, Yash Kadam, Praful Hinge
Tamil Nadu Ranji Trophy Squad
Mohamed Ali, N Jagadeesan(w), Pradosh Ranjan Paul, Baba Indrajith, Vijay Shankar, Andre Siddarth C, Ravisrinivasan Sai Kishore(c), M Mohammed, S Ajith Ram, Lakshay Jain S, Trilok Nag, Sandeep Warrier, Shahrukh Khan, Sonu Yadav, Suresh Lokeshwar, Manimaran Siddharth, Sai Sudharsan, Gurjapneet Singh, Boopathi Kumar, Pranav Ragavendra
Saurashtra Ranji Trophy Squad
Harvik Desai(w), Chirag Jani, Cheteshwar Pujara, Sheldon Jackson, Arpit Vasavada, Prerak Mankad, Sammar Gajjar, Dharmendrasinh Jadeja, Yuvrajsinh Dodiya, Jaydev Unadkat(c), Vishvaraj Jadeja, Parth Bhut, Tarang Gohel, Navneet Vora, Parswaraj Rana, Hiten Kanbi
Gujarat Ranji Trophy Squad
Aarya Desai, Aditya Udaykumar Patel, Manan Hingrajia, Umang Kumar, Jaymeet Patel, Urvil Patel(w), Chintan Gaja(c), Vishal Jayswal, Hemang Patel, Siddharth Desai, Arzan Nagwaswalla, Het Patel, Rinkesh Vaghela, Rishi Patel, Priyajitsing Jadeja, Kshitij Patel
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