The exciting quarterfinals of the ongoing Ranji Trophy season continued. After Day 1, we saw Haryana bowlers putting a stomp on Mumbai’s top-order before Shams Mulani and Tanush Kotian saved the defending champions. However, the Haryana batters have shown immense grit and it won’t be a surprise if they topple Ajinkya Rahane’s team. Meanwhile, Kerala, who are without an injured Sanju Samson, are facing issues against a resurgent Jammu & Kashmir side as well.
The underdogs story is also undergoing in Nagpur as well, where Vidarbha are making Tamil Nadu bite their teeth. Favourites were TN but a vibrant Vidarbha bowling attack has been quite ruthless, only to see a CSK youngster save some respectability for Tamil Nadu. Meanwhile, in the Gujarat derby, the Saurasthra have been feeling the heat as they gave away the first-innings lead.
Ajinkya Rahane’s Mumbai under massive pressure
Anshul Kamboj and Sumit Kumar left Mumbai reeling in the first two sessions on Day 1 of this Ranji Trophy clash. However, by the end of the day, Tanush Kotian and Shams Mulani saved the day for the defending champs. They ended the day at 278/8 and hoped to enter the three-figure marks, respectively. However, both Kotian and Mulani failed agonisingly in their 90s as Mumbai managed 315.
Mumbai would’ve banked on their pace batteries to damage Haryana’s batting but incredibly, the underdogs showed a courageous fight. Captain Ankit Kumar led from the front as he bludgeined a vigilant hundred, wearing out Shardul Thakur and other pacers. They had an opening stand of 87 runs and Mumbai couldn’t take wickets at regular intervals. Nishant Sindhu, who is with the Gujarat Titans (GT), smashed a 150 against Karnataka in the last game but failed to convert his start (20). Starred with the bat, both Mulani and Kotian took two wickets each to restrict the Haryana batters in the last session.
CSK youngster saves TN from embarrassment
Vidarbha had a dominating day against favourites Tamil Nadu. They finished Day 1 at 264/6, with Karun Nair smashing yet another century. They added 89 more runs to their overnight score, with Harsh Dubey making 69. Dubey is also the highest wicket-taker of this Ranji Trophy season. Aditya Thakare, a talented pace-bowling all-rounder, had his bowling skills to show as he put TN under pressure with his pace bowling. Veterans Jagadeesan, Mohamed Ali, and Vijay Shankar all failed alongside Sai Sudarshan.
However, youngster Andre Siddharth saved Tamil Nadu from some embarrassment, as his half-century was the only bright spot. The CSK talent, who was bought for Rs 30 lac, has had a superb Ranji Trophy season. In 11 innings, he has hammered 589 runs at an incredible average of 84.14, including five fifties. Tamil Nadu were 136/6 when Siddarth got out by Dubey. Had he not been there, TN could’ve been anywhere around 70 for 6.
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Kerala struggle without Samson
The Sanju Samson vs KCA story headlined this season’s domestic circuit. However, without their talisman, Kerala struggled once again. They barely managed to qualify for the quarterfinal and were once again saved somewhat by their lower-order batters. Jammu & Kashmir finished Day 1 at 228/8 and stretched their score to 280 thanks to Auqib Nabi’s cameo of 32 off 30 balls.
Incredibly for J&K, Nabi also starred with the ball to frustrate Kerala. He uprooted Kerala’s middle-order. Veteran Jalaj Saxena had some positives for Kerala, as he made 67. They were 11/3 and Saxena took them to 105/3. Rajasthan Royals (RR) pacer Yudhvir Charak Singh also claimed two wickets to reduce Kerala to 200/8 by the end of the day.
Meanwhile, it was a sedate day in Rajkot, where Gujarat took a first-innings lead. Hingrajia made 83, while Jaymeet Patel smashed an unbeaten 88. Saurashtra captain Jaydev Unadkat failed to inspire his side to bowl out Gujarat and would need their batters, including Cheteshwar Pujara, to step up in the third innings.
Ranji Trophy Day 2 QF Brief Scores:
| Match | Team 1 | Innings 1 Score | Team 2 | Innings 1 Score | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quarter Final 3 | Haryana | 263/5 (72.0 Ov) | Mumbai | 315 (88.2 Ov) | Haryana trail by 52 runs |
| Quarter Final 1 | J & K | 280 (95.1 Ov) | Kerala | 200/8 (62.5 Ov) | Kerala Trail By 80 Runs |
| Quarter Final 2 | Vidarbha | 353 (121.1 Ov) | Tamil Nadu | 159/6 (46.0 Ov) | Tamil Nadu Trail By 194 Runs |
| Quarter Final 4 | Saurashtra | 216 (72.1 Ov) | Gujarat | 260/4 (95.0 Ov) | Gujarat lead by 44 runs |
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