Comeback man Dhawal Kulkarni wreaked havoc with the new ball to hand Mumbai the initial edge in their quest for 41st Ranji Trophy title by reducing Saurashtra to 192 for eight in the first innings on the opening day of the summit clash, in Pune on Wednesday. Back in the side after missing the semifinal due to a groin strain, Kulkarni utilised the green track on offer to perfection after Mumbai skipper Aditya Tare won the toss and invited Saurashtra to bat. -Scorecard Kulkarni was spot on with his line and length, and managed to cut through Saurashtra top-order with figures of four for 30, which included the important wickets of opener Avi Barot, Cheteshwar Pujara, Arpit Vasavada and skipper Jaydev Shah. Kulkarni was ably supported by his new ball partner Shardul Thakur (2/59), Abhishek Nayar (1/42) and Balwinder Sandhu (1/41). Kulkarni, in particular, produced an impressive opening spell as Mumbai reduced Saurashtra to 108 for seven at one stage. Had it not been for Arpit Vasavada and debutant Prerak Mankad, it could have been an embarrassing scorecard for Saurashtra at the end of day's play during which they played 84.4 overs.
A round-up of the second day's play of the Ranji Trophy Super League matches on Saturday.
One of Australia's finest ever captain Ian Chappell never ever believed that a professional cricket team needs a specialist coach. "An international 'coach' is something the Australian team travels in around England," is one of Chappell's iconic pun-intended quote on what he exactly thought about cricket coaches. Back in India though, coaching senior teams - from international to IPL is a well-paid job, not discounting the glamour which is associated with it. But reality bites when one climbs down -- just a notch below at the first-class level where it's not always a bed of roses for all those plying their trade.
Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane along with the uncapped duo of Rajat Patidar and Sarfaraz Khan are in the running for a place in the Indian Test team.
Round-up of the Ranji Trophy matches being played in different parts of the country
Sunil Gavaskar and Sachin Tendulkar believe that the T20 Mumbai League will benefit the youngsters in the city and also them give them an opportunity to catch the attention of the IPL teams.
A summary of Tuesday's play in the Ranji Trophy matches at various venues across the country.
Pacer Mukesh Kumar took six wickets to help Bengal beat Karnataka by 174 runs and enter the final of the Ranji Trophy for the first time in 13 years, in Kolkata, on Tuesday. Chasing 352 for victory, Karnataka were bowled out for 177 in their second innings with Mukesh taking 6-61 in 21 overs, while Ishan Porel and Akash Deep took two wickets each.
The absence of big names such as Sachin Tendulkar and Zaheer Khan notwithstanding, Mumbai skipper Rohit Sharma is confident that his team would prove to be quite a handful for hosts Rajasthan in their Ranji Trophy match starting in Jaipur on Friday.
The veteran right-hander etched his name as one of the greats in Indian domestic cricket history as he became the highest run-getter in Ranji Trophy.
India batsman Abhinav Mukund hit a patient half-century as Tamil Nadu reached 181 for three against Haryana at close of the second day in their Elite Group B Ranji Trophy match in Chennai on Sunday.
The technical committee meeting will be followed by a meeting of Tours and Fixtures Committee, which will decide on the dates of India's limited overs home series against Australia in October and November.
The India Test spinner had one wicket to show in 21 overs during Day 1 of the Ranji Trophy Group B match against Madhya Pradesh.
A round-up of the third day's play of the Ranji Trophy Super League matches on Wednesday.
Sachin Tendulkar, Zaheer Khan and Wasim Jaffer will turn out for Mumbai against Maharashtra in the Elite Group 'B' match.
Veteran Wasim Jaffer became the first batsman to reach the landmark of 11,000 runs in Ranji Trophy during Day 2 of Nagpur's Group A match against Baroda on Wednesday.
Former India pacer Paras Mhambrey, one of the brains behind India's highly-successful India 'A' and Under-19 team programmes, has applied for the position of the senior squad's bowling coach on Monday, BCCI sources revealed.
A round-up of all the Ranji Trophy matches played on Sunday
There were three attractive half-centuries but a top and lower-middle order collapse saw hosts Karnataka manage a below-par 264 for 9 against Saurashtra on the opening day of the Ranji Trophy semi-final on Thursday.
Tail-ender Javed Khan, batting with a finger injury, saved Mumbai from following-on while chasing Railways' first innings score of 242 in the rain-truncated Ranji Trophy match, in Delhi, on Wednesday. A summary of the final day's play of the league matches around the country.
Maharashtra opening batsman Rohan Bhosale's century went in vain as Baroda beat Maharashtra by four wickets in Rajkot on Saturday to qualify for the knockout stages of the Ranji Trophy one-day tournament along with Mumbai. Chasing 251 for victory, Baroda's top order batsmen clicked in unison as they cantered to victory with more than 10 overs to spare.
A summary of the second day's play in the Elite division matches of the Ranji Trophy.
A round-up of the Ranji Trophy matches played on Monday
Balwinder Singh Sandhu replaces Ajit Jayaprakasham who had coached the state team for several years.
Shivam Dubey was on Tuesday grabbed by the Royal Challengers Bangalore for a whopping Rs 5 crore.
All eyes will be on the opening fixture between defending champions Saurashtra and record 41-time champions Mumbai in Ahmedabad with Rahane and Pujara on either side, aiming to make the big scores that have deserted them at the Test level for a while.
RCB all-rounder Swapnil Singh, who entered the IPL in the second half and made an immediate impact, opened up on his "emotional" cricketing journey that saw him experience numerous ups and downs and his relationship with star batter Virat Kohli.
A round up of the second day's action of the Ranji Trophy Super League matches on Monday.
The veteran batsman, playing in his final Ranji Trophy match, steered Mumbai to victory over Haryana with a dogged innings of 79 on a difficult wicket at the Bansi Lal Cricket Stadium.
A round-up of results from the Ranji Trophy matches played on Tuesday
Vidarbha opener Wasim Jaffer became the first cricketer in Ranji Trophy history to notch up 10000 runs on day two of their Group A match against Bengal at the Jadavpur University second campus ground in Saltlake in Kolkata on Sunday.
A determined effort from Orissa batsman Niranjan Behera ensured Mumbai had to be content with a single point from their drawn Ranji Trophy Super League match at the Brabourne stadium.
Karun Nair returned to form with a patient hundred as Karnataka set a stiff target of 380 for Hyderabad on the third day of their Group 'A' Ranji Trophy encounter.
