Mumbai entered record-extending 48th Ranji Trophy final after beating Tamil Nadu by an innings and 70 runs at the BKC Ground on Monday.
Led by the might of the lower-order batting at the BKC Ground, Mumbai posted 378 in their first innings in reply to Tamil Nadu’s 146 after the visitors won the toss and bat first on the opening day.
Mumbai were reeling at 106 for seven in pursuit with Tamil Nadu captain Sai Kishore jolting the middle-order with his 10th First-Class five-for. However, India international Shardul Thakur’s counterattacking maiden FC hundred helped Mumbai take the lead before number 10 Tanush Kotian’s unbeaten 89 bolstered the hosts’ command. Kotian and Tushar Deshpande, who recorded a historic 232-run stand for the 10th wicket in the quarterfinal against Baroda, managed another gritty 88-run stand for the last wicket.
The Tamil Nadu batters did not get going in the second innings either, with Thakur rocking the top order, dismissing openers Sai Sudharsan (5) and N Jagadeesan (0) early. Baba Indrajith offered some resistance with a 105-ball 70 before left-arm spinner Shams Mulani snapped up four wickets. The result marked Tamil Nadu’s 17th defeat to Mumbai (Bombay) across 31 Ranji meetings.
The win propelled Mumbai’s (formerly Bombay) into a record-extending 48th Ranji Trophy final, having previously won the title for a record 41 times. Mumbai’s last appearance in the final was in the 2022-23 season where they lost to Madhya Pradesh.
Their last title win was in the 2015-16 season, beating Saurashtra in the summit clash.
𝐌𝐮𝐦𝐛𝐚𝐢 𝐜𝐫𝐮𝐢𝐬𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥! 👏
A superb performance from the @ajinkyarahane88-led side as they beat Tamil Nadu by an innings and 70 runs in Semi Final 2 of the @IDFCFIRSTBank #RanjiTrophy 🙌#MUMvTN | #SF2
Scorecard ▶️ https://t.co/9tosMLk9TT pic.twitter.com/bOikVOmBn1
— BCCI Domestic (@BCCIdomestic) March 4, 2024
Having topped the combined points table standings with 37 points in the group stage, Mumbai will have the advantage of playing at their home venue in the final, irrespective of the winner of the Vidarbha-Madhya Pradesh semifinal.
The Ranji Trophy 2023-24 final will be held at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai from March 10-14.
Source:indianexpress.com