Saurashtra have qualified for their first Ranji Trophy final but Cheteshwar Pujara, the mainstay of their batting, will most likely be sitting on the bench watching India play England in Dharmsala in the fifth ODI. The same goes for Rohit Sharma, who would bolster Mumbai's batting, but will be on the sidelines instead, watching others play cricket.
A report in the Times of India states that both the Saurashtra Cricket Association and the Mumbai Cricket Association wrote to the BCCI and asked for the two players to be released for the final. However, both requests were turned down.
The paper quotes a board official: They will be with the Indian team for the fourth and fifth one-dayers at Mohali and Dharmasala, respectively. We have never released players for domestic matches during a one-day series. It is only during Test series that we follow the rule of releasing at least three reserve players so they can get serious match practice.
The Vijay Hazare Trophy one daymatches could be played in similar format as the Ranji Trophy,consisting of three divisions, from next season if the BCCIaccepts the proposal it received today at the one-day conclaveof captains and coaches held here.
They (Ranji captains and coaches) were keen for the oneday matches to be played in the Ranji Trophy format. But itstough. Right now it is zonal and they want how the RanjiTrophy is played...like crisscrossing (the country). It'stough logistically, said BCCI's technical committee chairmanAnil Kumble after the annual one-day meeting.
The technical committee did an overhaul of the RanjiTrophy format at the end of last season by abolishing eliteand plate divisions and bringing in a three-tier system,featuring all teams from this season.
But the one-day matches are being held under the eliteand plate division format.
Kolhapur: Former Ranji cricketer BB Nimbalkar, who holds the Ranji record for the highest individual score, passed away today due to age-related ailments at his Nagala park residence here. Nimbalkar was 93. His cremation will be held late in the day, family sources said.
The right-handed batsman holds the record for scoring an unbeaten 443 for Maharashtra against Kathiawar in a Ranji Trophy match at Pune in 1948-49. He was often described as a man who nearly beat Bradman
for his innings, as at that time his knock was second only to the Australian's 452 not out in first-class cricket. His innings still remains the fourth-highest individual score in first class cricket.
Mumbai: Former India pacer Ajit Agarkar was today named Mumbai Ranji team captain for the first four Ranji league games, starting 2 November.
Ajit Agarkar has been selected as captain of Mumbai team for the first four league matches of Ranji Trophy, said MCA's joint secretary and selection panel convener Nitin Dalal.
Dalal did not give any particular reason for keeping Agarkar at the helm for only the first four games and not for the entire season, as is the customary practice. That's what the selection committee panel decided today, Dalal said.
Unmukt Chand and Shikhar Dhawan smashed hundreds for Delhi against Tamil Nadu while Rohit Sharma and Hiken Shah made three-figure scores in Mumbai's contest against Hyderabad on the opening day of the Ranji Trophy fourth round matches here Saturday.
Chand (134 not out) was batting alongside Mohit Sharma (40 not out) as Delhi made 287 for one by close of play at the Feroz Shah Kotla here. Captain Dhawan shared a 205-run partnership with opening partner Chand before being dismissed on 104.
It was the first century of the Ranji Trophy season for both Chand and Dhawan.
A guaranteed place in the Ranji Trophy semi-finals. A first-innings lead of 374. Five sessions in which to bowl out the opposition a second time. With all these advantages, Mumbai still did not enforce the follow-on against Baroda on day four of their Ranji quarter-final. There was no eagerness to push for an outright win, no desire to go for the jugular. Moving on to the next round was enough.
In their last game of the league round, all Mumbai needed for an outright win was 135 from a minimum of 41 overs. Instead, they crawled to 65 for 1 from 27 overs when the match was called off. After the game, Mumbai coach Sulakshan Kulkarni said, It wasn't really going to matter eventually - whether we went for the target or not. The fact is we have achieved the objective of qualifying for the quarter-final.
The fault though, lies not with Mumbai, but in the Ranji schedule that requires the players to play five-day matches back to back. Mumbai would have wanted to rest their bowlers ahead of their semi-final clash with Services. Having the batsman pile on a few extra runs would also do no harm to their confidence. The players can't be faulted for their approach.
The bigger problem is the system that forces teams to make these sorts of decisions. Teams, and by extension players, have to learn how to win. In Test cricket, there is no excuse for not going for a win under similar circumstances. A captain who chose not to do so would be castigated from all quarters. Yet in Indian domestic cricket you have India's most successful Ranji side, a side renowned for its killer instinct, choosing to simply let play meander for almost two days.
