Mumbai: A terrifying show of fast
bowling handed Mumbai their 40th Ranji Trophy in great haste as Saurashtra wrinkled
under pressure at the Wankhede Stadium on Monday. It was a premature end to a
heavily lop-sided match. The visitors, beginning their second innings 207
behind, were shot out for 82 in just 36.3 overs, leaving Mumbai massive winner
by an innings and 125 runs well within the third day itself.
Medium pacer Dhawal Kulkarni (5/32)
and skipper Ajit Agarkar (4/15) and were the principal wreckers. Agarkar detached
both the openers – Shitanshu Kotak and Sagar Jogiyani – and first innings
half-centurion Aarpit Vasavada for a blob apiece. Kulkarni accounted for Rahul
Dave (5), captain Jaydev Shah (6) and the dangerous Sheldon Jackson (9) to
ensure there be no fightback whatsoever.
Even Mumbai would have been astonished
at the degree of Saurashtra’s capitulation and for a while, at 20/6, it appear
that the lowest-ever total in the Ranji Trophy was in danger of life form
underwhelmed. That discredit avoided, Saurashtra did little else to vindicate
their attendance in the final of India’s biggest domestic competition, their reliance
on a flat home track at Rajkot surfacing fatally at the Wankhede.
Centurion opener Wasim Jaffer was name
Man of the Match, beating Dhawal Kulkarni, who took nine wickets for 56 runs in
the match.
"(It's) A great moment to get a
hundred in the championship. Once we got them out for 148, it was important to strike
well, and that's what we did. The bowlers did the job really well. Probably
this wicket had a great deal more help for the bowlers, so it was a good choice
to bowl first. Kulkarni has been bowling well. He was unlucky in the league
stages, but in this competition he got the wickets too," he said once the
victorious group in the middle have broken.
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