Nagpur, Feb 25 (IANS) Kerala have set their eye on their maiden Ranji Trophy title when they take on two-time champions Vidarbha in the summit clash, which will be played at the VCA Stadium here in Jamtha from Wednesday.
Kerala has had an impressive season, reaching the semifinals for the second time in their history, previously achieving this milestone in the 2018-19 season. However, they have never advanced beyond this stage since then. But, under the guidance of head coach Amay Khurasiya, the team broke this long-standing barrier and made history by reaching their first-ever Ranji Trophy final after taking a slim two-run first-innings lead against Gujarat.
En route to the final, Kerala drew all four of their group-stage matches, facing Madhya Pradesh, Haryana, Bengal, and Karnataka and advanced to the knockout stage.
The Sachin Bay-led team then drew their quarterfinal match against Jammu and Kashmir, progressing to their second-ever semifinal with a first-innings lead. They secured their maiden final berth with a dramatic win in the semifinal.
Kerala’s run to the final has been dotted with key performances from their 38-year-old veteran Jalaj Saxena and Salman Nizar. Saxena completed the rare Ranji double of 6000 runs and 400 wickets earlier in the season, while Nizar has been their highest run-getter with 607 runs at an average of 86.71. Fast bowler MD Nidheesh has become a formidable force and even took a match haul of ten wickets in the quarterfinal.
On the other hand, this will be Vidarbha’s fourth Ranji Trophy final and the second on the trot. The Akshay Wadkar-led side, who have remained unbeaten this year, would like to make amends from last year’s final, where they lost against Mumbai. Interestingly, they secured a commanding 80-run victory over 42-time champions Mumbai to reach the final.
Vidarbha have won five of their seven group stage matches with two ending up in a draw. In the quarterfinal, they defeated Tamil Nadu by an innings and 88 runs, followed by their win over Mumbai in the semis.
Vidarbha will bank majorly on batter Yash Rathod, who has scored 933 runs in 9 matches this year, at an average of 58, and bowler Harsh Dubey, who has 66 wickets this season. Their skipper also led from the front with his gritty performances and is the second highest run-getter for the team with 674-runs.
Vidarbha, however, retained their 17-member squad for the final of the Ranji Trophy while Kerala are yet to name their sqaud.
Squad-
Vidarbha: Akshay Wadkar (c&wk), Atharva Taide, Aman Mokhade, Yash Rathod, Harsh Dubey, Akshay Karnewar, Yash Kadam, Akshay Wakhare, Aditya Thakare, Darshan Nalkande, Nachiket Bhute, Siddhesh Wath (wk), Yash Thakur, Danish Malewar, Parth Rekhade, Karun Nair, Dhruv Shorey.
Kerala: Yet to be named
–IANS
bc/
Disclaimer
The information contained in this website is for general information purposes only. The information is provided by TodayIndia.news and while we endeavour to keep the information up to date and correct, we make no representations or warranties of any kind, express or implied, about the completeness, accuracy, reliability, suitability or availability with respect to the website or the information, products, services, or related graphics contained on the website for any purpose. Any reliance you place on such information is therefore strictly at your own risk.
In no event will we be liable for any loss or damage including without limitation, indirect or consequential loss or damage, or any loss or damage whatsoever arising from loss of data or profits arising out of, or in connection with, the use of this website.
Through this website you are able to link to other websites which are not under the control of TodayIndia.news We have no control over the nature, content and availability of those sites. The inclusion of any links does not necessarily imply a recommendation or endorse the views expressed within them.
Every effort is made to keep the website up and running smoothly. However, TodayIndia.news takes no responsibility for, and will not be liable for, the website being temporarily unavailable due to technical issues beyond our control.
For any legal details or query please visit original source link given with news or click on Go to Source.
Our translation service aims to offer the most accurate translation possible and we rarely experience any issues with news post. However, as the translation is carried out by third part tool there is a possibility for error to cause the occasional inaccuracy. We therefore require you to accept this disclaimer before confirming any translation news with us.
If you are not willing to accept this disclaimer then we recommend reading news post in its original language.
