New Delhi: Harsh Dubey starred with a sensational five-wicket haul as Vidarbha sealed a commanding 80-run victory over defending champions Mumbai to reach the Ranji Trophy final at the VCA Ground in Nagpur on Friday.
Shardul Thakur scored a superb fifty but it went in vain as Dube, the 22-year-old left arm from Pune, claimed three wickets to add to his two from day 4, helping Vidarbha bowl out Mumbai for 325 while chasing a challenging target of 406. Vidarbha, in the process, exacted sweet revenge for last year’s loss in the final to Mumbai.
Courtesy of his superb five-wicket-haul, Dube took his season’s tally to 66 wickets.
With the impressive win, Vidarbha reached their fourth Ranji Trophy final, with previous titles coming in the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons.
Dubey, just two wickets shy of Bihar left-arm spinner Ashutosh Aman’s record for the most wickets in a Ranji season, has a great opportunity to etch his name in the history books.
Thakur and Mulani’s efforts go in vain
Chasing a stiff target, Mumbai, riding on Thakur’s 66 off 124 balls (5x4s, 1×6), fought hard to reach their second successive final. Thakur and Shams Mulani (46) stitched a resilient 103-run partnership for the seventh wicket, but a run-out at the crucial stage by Danish Malewar shifted the momentum in Vidarbha’s favour as Mulani was dismissed for 94 balls.
Meanwhile, Thakur’s resistance ended when he was clean-bowled by Yash Thakur, leaving Mumbai at 254 for 8.
Royston Dias and Mohit Awasthi forged a 52-run stand for the final wicket, taking Mumbai past 300 in 93.4 overs.
But Dubey wrapped things up in the final session, trapping Awasthi to seal a historic win for Vidarbha. Earlier, Mumbai suffered an early blow as Shivam Dube fell early in the morning when Yash Thakur castled him with a beauty.
Vidarbha will take on Kerala, who entered their maiden final with a dramatic victory over Gujarat.
Brief Scores: Vidarbha 383 & 292 beat Mumbai 270 & 325 all out in 97.5 overs (Shardul Thakur 66, Shams Mulani 46; Harsh Dubey 5/127) by 80 runs
Ranji Trophy: With the impressive win over Mumbai, Vidarbha reached their fourth Ranji Trophy final, with previous titles coming in the 2017-18 and 2018-19 seasons. Cricket Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
