Ranji Trophy 2024/25, VIDAR vs MUM 2nd semi final Match Report, February 17 - 21, 2025

Ranji Trophy 2024/25, VIDAR vs MUM 2nd semi final Match Report, February 17 – 21, 2025

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Vidarbha triumphed over Mumbai by 80 runs in the Ranji Trophy semi-final, securing their spot in the final. The match featured standout performances, including Malewar’s 79 and Shorey’s 74 for Vidarbha, while Anand scored 106 for Mumbai. Shardul Thakur fought back for Mumbai with a half-century, but it wasn’t enough as they collapsed to 270 and 325 in their innings. Harsh Dubey claimed five wickets, finishing the match with 5-127 and bringing his season tally to 66, just shy of a record. Vidarbha’s win set the stage for their quest for another championship.

Vidarbha scored 383 (Malewar 79, Shorey 74, Dube 5-49) and 292 (Rathod 151, Wadkar 52, Mulani 6-85) to defeat Mumbai, who made 270 (Anand 106, Rekhade 4-55, Dubey 2-68) and 325 (Shardul 66, Mulani 46, Dubey 5-127), by 80 runs

Shardul Thakur’s courageous half-century was insufficient for Mumbai’s defense as the reigning champions fell to Vidarbha, last year’s finalists, in a thrilling match that extended into the last session of the final day in Nagpur.
At the helm of Vidarbha’s journey to the final – having secured two of their three Ranji finals previously – was left-arm spin-bowling allrounder Harsh Dubey, who achieved his seventh five-wicket haul of the season, elevating his wicket tally to 66. He is just two wickets shy of matching the record set by Bihar’s left-arm spinner Ashutosh Aman for the most wickets in a Ranji season.

Victory seemed almost assured for Vidarbha on the final day when Mumbai lost Shivam Dube and Suryakumar Yadav early, plummeting to 124 for 6. Dube was bowled by Yash Thakur after playing outside the line of a sharp in-ducker, while Suryakumar gloved a catch to slips off a rising delivery from Dubey.

However, from the depths of trouble, Shardul rose to the challenge as he has done several times this season. Batting with typical aggression and a sense of purpose, he quickly reduced the run deficit during a century partnership with Shams Mulani.

At one juncture, midway through the second session, Vidarbha’s left-arm spinners even opted for a defensive strategy by bowling outside leg to Shardul to frustrate him into either slogging or stepping out against well-spread fields. Vidarbha missed a chance to run Shardul out at 48 when Akshay Wadkar, their captain and wicketkeeper, fumbled a throw from fine leg.

Vidarbha seemed to falter briefly, but Mumbai inadvertently gifted them a wicket in the form of Mulani when Shardul attempted a risky single to square leg. Mulani hesitated and was well short of the crease despite a dive as Danish Malewar’s one-handed pickup and throw hit the target perfectly, breaking a 103-run partnership.

Shardul then started to take more aggressive boundary attempts as he sensed the risk of being left stranded, but he eventually fell to a brilliant delivery from Yash. Caught off guard by a short-of-length ball that swung back in, it breached his defense and knocked over the stumps.

Mumbai’s last-wicket pair of Mohit Awasthi and Royston Dias put together a spirited 52-run stand, reducing the requirement to less than three figures, until Awasthi’s ambitious reverse sweep led to his lbw dismissal, allowing Dubey to celebrate his fifth wicket and seal the victory.

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