Quarterfinals kept the services at bay to deny them a place in the Quarterfinals 2024
how Maharashtra’s strategic play kept Services at bay, thwarting their bid for a quarterfinals spot. Get insights into the intense battle and pivotal moments of the match.
The quarterfinalist for the year were confirmed with Vidarbha clashing against Karnataka in Nagpur, Mumbai taking on Baroda in Mumbai, Tamil Nadu facing Saurashtra in Coimbatore and Madhya Pradesh going up against Andhra in Indore as the final leg of the Ranji season came to an end. All the quarterfinals will take place between February 23 and 27.
It also proved to be the last day in first-class cricket for Jharkhand’s Saurabh Tiwari and Varun Aaron, as well as Vidarbha’s Faiz Fazal.
Group A
Anukul Roy finished with a five-fer as he helped Jharkhand to a 78-run victory over Rajasthan. The visitors were bundled out for 158 while chasing a target of 240 in the final innings with only 38 runs added on the final day before Roy hastened the end.
Vidarbha clinched victory while defending a target of 298 against Haryana. Earlier Nishant Sindhu’s 4-wicket haul had bowled Vidarbha out for 205 but the target was defended by a collective bowling performance. While Akshay Wakhare picked up a three-wickets haul, there were two apiece for Umesh Yadav and Aditya Sarwate as well as Vidarbha sealed their spot in the quarterfinal.
Services gained a massive first innings lead over Maharashtra but the latter managed to hold onto a draw despite losing six wickets in their second innings. Arshin Kulkarni, Kaushal Tambe and Anurag Kawade each faced over hundred balls in a rearguard action that saw Maharashtra bat out ninety overs in their final innings for just 157.
Group B
Andhra managed to hold Kerala to a draw after conceding a massive first innings lead. The last wicket pair of Shoaib Md Khan and Penmetsa Raju saw off 31 balls to deny Kerala an outright win. The former played the lead hand in the lower order sticking through with a 97-ball 11.
Priyam Garg’s valiant unbeaten 113 could not power Uttar Pradesh to victory as they ended 75 short of the target of 277 set by Chhattisgarh. A sprighly chase saw them power to over 200 in 42 overs but it was not enough to get them to victory after already having conceded a massive first innings lead.
Group C
Mayank Sindhu held up one end with a 150-ball 56 that helped Chandigarh draw their encounter against Karnataka. Sindhu, along with Karan Kaila, saw off 29 overs in the final innings to keep the hosts at bay. That helped set up a quarterfinal clash for Karnataka against Vidarbha.
Despite a hundred from Nehal Wadhera, Punjab could not stave off defeat against Tamil Nadu. Sai Kishore, Tamil Nadu’s captain, picked up four wickets as Punjab lost their last six wickets for 51 runs. The 71-run target was wiped off with ease as Tamil Nadu set up a Quarterfinals spot for themselves against Saurashtra.
Hundreds from Pratham Singh and Mohammad Saif helped Railways overhaul a massive target of 378 against Tripura. It was the highest-ever successful fourth innings chase in Ranji Trophy history but unfortunately for Railways it was not enough to set up a place in the Quarterfinals.
Group D
Sumit Mathur picked up a five-wicket haul to set up Delhi’s victory over Odisha. It helped bowl Odisha out for 133 in the second innings. Delhi managed to chase down the target in quick time with Ayush Badoni hitting a quickfire 40.
Vishnu Solanki, Shivalik Sharma and Mitesh Patel held Baroda together in their final innings to help them to a draw against Uttarakhand. With that, Baroda set up their quarterfinal date with Mumbai.
Kumar Kartikeya and Kulwant Khejroliya picked up three wickets apiece as Madhya Pradesh overcame a first innings deficit to register a 256-run victory. Having progressed to the Quarterfinals, MP will now take on Andhra.