Harsh Dubey picked up five wickets as Vidarbha outclassed Mumbai by 80 runs to enter the Ranji Trophy final, in Nagpur, on Friday.
The bonus point win helped Gujarat (26) climb to the second spot, two points behind Vidarbha who led a strong second innings fightback in an away match against Rajasthan.
Vidarbha stayed firmly in control of the Irani Cup final, setting Rest of India a stiff 361-run target before reducing them to 30 for two in 12 overs when rain forced an early close on the fourth day, in Nagpur, on Saturday.
Prashanth Neel's Dragon promises a sprawling mass action spectacle with its gritty world-building, intriguing historical backstory, and Jr NTR's ferocious transformation as 'Luger'.
Earlier, Akash Anand completed his second first-class century and shared a 69-run stand with Tanush Kotian (33) to lead Mumbai's recovery after they ended the second day at 188 for seven.
Former winners Vidarbha will rely on their red-hot form to stake claim for a title they last won over five years ago, while first-time finalists Kerala will be driven by grit when the two contrasting teams clash in the summit showdown for the 90th Ranji Trophy, starting in Nagpur on Wednesday.
Karun Nair's wife Sanaya Tankariwala Nair took to social media to vent her frustration, labelling Nair's omission as pure injustice to the batter and a 'complete contradiction of the system's stated purpose'.
Karun Nair created a new world record for the most runs in List A cricket without being dismissed while guiding Vidarbha to an eight-wicket victory over Uttar Pradesh.
India pacer Mohammed Shami's five-wicket burst put Bengal on the verge of an outright victory with bonus point against Services on the third day of their Ranji Trophy Elite Group C match in Kalyani, West Bengal on Saturday.
South leads by a mere 64 runs, and Central should be able to surmount the target without much fuss on the fifth day on Monday.
Karnataka, Maharashtra register innings wins to go 1-2 in Group B of Ranji Tropphy.
Gaikwad constructed a handy partnership 90 for the second wicket with Aarya Desai as West gradually entered a stabilised phase.
Shreyas Iyer's 604 runs across 17 matches for Punjab Kings at a strike-rate in excess of 175 did not resonate with the selectors during the Asia Cup selection.
Vidarbha thrashed Maharashtra by 69 runs in the Vijay Hazare Trophy semi-final to enter the final, wher
Vidarbha took command of their Ranji Trophy semi-final against Madhya Pradesh with the key wicket of Yash Dubey (94) late on Day 4.
Domestic veterans Ruturaj Gaikwad, Rajat Patidar and Rinku Singh could keep the team management interested going forward in Test cricket.
Sarfaraz Khan and Siddhesh Lad compiled superlative hundreds to power table-toppers Mumbai to a commanding 332 for 4 on Day 1 of their Ranji Trophy match against hosts Hyderabad on Thursday.
Mumbai were steady at 113 for two at one stage but Rekhade, playing only his second First-Class match, ripped open the Ranji champions' batting line-up, first with an innocuous delivery which claimed the prized scalp of Ajinkya Rahane in the 41st over.
Skipper Iyer hit 137 not out as Mumbai crushed Puducherry by a massive 163 runs in their Group C game in Ahmedabad.
The Vidarbha Cricket Association (VCA) has announced a cash reward of Rs 3 crore for its Ranji Trophy winning side, apart from separate cash incentives for the support staff and some of its players. The VCA also felicitated Akshay Wakhare on his retirement. Vidarbha forced a draw against Kerala in the summit clash and clinched the title on the basis of their first innings lead of 37 runs at the VCA Stadium in Jamtha.
Jammu and Kashmir's Shubham Khajuria struck a fighting, unbeaten century to rescue North Zone, but South Zone remained favourites to progress to the Duleep Trophy final, in Bengaluru on Saturday.
Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh are set for a high-stakes clash as they battle for the final quarter-final spot from Elite Group B.
Vidarbha, led by Akshay Wadkar, captured their third Ranji Trophy title, defeating Kerala in the final.
Mumbai sealed a bonus-point victory with a nine-wicket thrashing of Hyderabad in their Group D Ranji Trophy match, in Hyderabad, on Sunday.
Mhatre's maiden ton, Dube blitz fire Mumbai to seven-wicket win over Vidarbha
IMAGES from Day 2 of the Ranji Trophy final played between Mumbai and Vidarbha at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Monday.
The fringe and aspiring bunch will look to own the elevated Duleep Trophy stage as the red-ball competition returns to its traditional zonal format and marks the start of India's domestic cricket season.
Vidarbha defeat Madhya Pradesh by 62 runs, to meet Mumbai in final
Karun Nair has smashed 664 runs with five centuries in eight matches at an astonishing average of 664 in the Vijay Hazare Trophy.
A round-up of the Ranji Trophy matches played on Saturday.
Aditya Sarwate's unbeaten 66 anchored Kerala's strong reply as the visitors reached 131/3 at stumps on Day 2 of the Ranji Trophy final, after restricting hosts Vidarbha to 379.
Mayank Agarawal's unbeaten 139 took Karnataka over the line against Punjab by one wicket,
Shardul Thakur and Tanush Kotian claimed two wickets each to put Mumbai on course for victory against Tamil Nadu.
Karnataka won their fifth Vijay Hazare Trophy title, defeating Vidarbha by 36 runs in a high-scoring final. Smaran Ravichandran's stylish century (101 off 92) and Abhinav Manohar's blistering 79 off 42 propelled Karnataka to a commanding total of 348 for 6. Dhruv Shorey's third consecutive century (110) went in vain for Vidarbha, who were all out for 312 in 48.2 overs despite Harsh Dubey's explosive 63 off 30 balls.
Opener Musheer Khan (112) and veteran Siddhesh Lad (100 not out) hit centuries to rally Mumbai to 289/5 on Day 1 of the Ranji Trophy Elite Group D match against Himachal Pradesh.
Karun Nair slammed his fourth century of the Ranji Trophy season to help Vidarbha tighten their grip over Kerala, in the final, in Nagpur on Saturday.
As many as 16 wickets fell on the opening day as visitors Hyderabad were left reeling at 88/6 after bundling out Jammu and Kashmir for 170 on the opening day of their Ranji Trophy Elite Group D match in Jammu on Sunday.
Danish Malewar's gritty 79 and opener Dhruv Shorey's attractive 74 helped Vidarbha reach 308 for 5 against defending champions Mumbai on the first day of their Ranji Trophy semi-final.
Here's a roundup of all Ranji Trophy matches played on Day 1 on Wednesday.
Mumbai were bowled out for 181 in their second innings, setting J&K 243 runs to win the season-opening match.
