Ranji Trophy 2024-25
Mumbai, Jan 25: Unfancied Jammu and Kashmir continued their glorious run in the ongoing Ranji Trophy, beating star-studded defending champions Mumbai by five wickets in a group A league match to almost confirm their knock-out berth. It was after a decade that Jammu and Kashmir beat the 42-time champions, having last won in December 2014 at the Wankhede Stadium. It wasn’t a mean achievement with Mumbai squad comprising of India Test and ODI skipper Rohit Sharma, former captain and 80 plus Test match veteran Ajinkya Rahane, ODI regular and IPL winning skipper Shreyas Iyer, star opener Yashasvi Jaiswal, seasoned all-rounder Shardul Thakur and off-spinner Tanush Kotian, who was a part of Border-Gavaskar squad. Rohit’s return to Ranji Trophy after a decade yielded only 31 runs across two knocks and he looked very much out of form, shaky and not ready to grind it out for long hours. J&K now have 29 points from six games and lead group A with a match left against Baroda where they need to get just one point. (PTI)
Gujarat thrash Uttarakhand
Ahmedabad, Jan 25: Left-arm spinner Siddharth Desai’s spellbinding performance was the highlight as Gujarat secured a dominant innings and 28 run victory over Uttarakhand in their Ranji Trophy Elite Group B match here on Saturday. Desai’s career-best figures of 9/36 had single-handedly dismantled the visitors’ batting lineup to bowl them out for 111 in the first innings. In reply, Gujarat’s Manan Hingrajia (116) and Jaymeet Patel (121) piled on the runs as they posted a formidable 393, taking a substantial 282-run lead. Uttarakhand folded for 254 in their second essay as Gujarat wrapped up the match with more than a day to spare. Desai wasn’t done yet as he continued to torment Uttarakhand batters, claiming 3 more wickets in the second innings to finish with a remarkable match haul of 12/113. (PTI)