Mumbai vs Saurashtra, Ranji Trophy 2015-16 Final at Pune, Preview: Underdogs take on conquistadors
Mumbai vs Saurashtra, Ranji Trophy 2015-16 Final at Pune: Preview
Mumbai and Saurashtra will face off in the final of Ranji Trophy 2015-16 at Pune starting February 24, 2016. Mumbai are chasing their world record 42nd title, while Saurashtra are searching for their first-ever Ranji Trophy title. Saurashtra had previously won Ranji Trophy when they were called Nawanagar, but that was decades ago. Few would have expected these two teams to make the final at the start of the year. Neither team were favourites coming into the tournament, but both have managed to overcome every hurdle they faced. In fact, Saurashtra were in Group C, which was the plate division. That they not only progressed to the elite division but made it to the final speaks volumes of their development this year. READ: Ranji Trophy 2015-16: Teams which have exceeded expectations
Mumbai have been without Ajinkya Rahane and Rohit Sharma — two of their mainstays — for virtually the entire tournament. On the other hand, Saurashtra had the huge advantage of a red-hot Ravindra Jadeja at the start of their campaign. Jadeja’s tremendous all-round form helped them to get off to an electric start. Jadeja’s fantastic run with both bat and ball propelled him back into India’s squad, and he made his comeback in all three formats with the Test series against South Africa and then the One-Day International (ODI) and Twenty20 International (T20I) series in and against Australia. READ: Ranji Trophy 2015-16: Shreyas Iyer, Akhil Herwadkar, Ravindra Jadeja, and others who did well
Mumbai have been well-served by their talismanic 21-year old batting sensation Shreyas Iyer. The rate at which Shreyas is scoring runs, there is a high chance he could get a call-up to the national team sooner rather than later. In only his second First-Class season, Shreyas is within striking distance of becoming the highest scorer in a single Ranji Trophy season. Shreyas is currently fifth on the list of all-time highest scorers in a season, behind VVS Laxman, Vijay Bharadwaj, Wasim Jaffer, and Kedar Jadhav. Another 211 runs and Shreyas will reach the landmark. READ: Shreyas Iyer on the verge of Ranji Trophy history
Saurashtra meanwhile have the services of Cheteshwar Pujara, as usual overlooked for India’s limited-overs teams. Pujara has not been as prolific this Ranji season as usual, but is a big-match player whose international experience will be invaluable in the tense final. Jaydev Unadkat bowled Saurashtra to the final, and will be expected to play a big role this time around as well. READ: 5 cricketers who excelled in Ranji Trophy but failed in international cricket
The final is being played in Pune, which hosted the recent T20I between India and Sri Lanka. If the pitch for the final is anything like the one seen in that T20I, the match could be over within three days. Indian skipper MS Dhoni had compared conditions on the day of the T20I with those seen in England. If the weather is overcast and the pitch as conductive to pace bowling as seen that day, the final of Ranji Trophy 2015-16 will almost certainly be decided by an outright result.
Squads:
Mumbai: Aditya Tare(c&wk), Shreyas Iyer, Dhawal Kulkarni, Vishal Dabholkar, Akhil Herwadkar, Iqbal Abdulla, Siddhesh Lad, Abhishek Nayar, Balwinder Sandhu, Shardul Thakur, Suryakumar Yadav, Badre Alam, Nikhil Patil, Sufiyan Sheikh, Bhavin Thakkar.
Saurashtra: Jaydev Shah(c), Sagar Jogiyani(wk), Cheteshwar Pujara, Sheldon Jackson, Dharmendrasinh Jadeja, Arpit Vasavada, Avi Barot, Chirag Jani, Kamlesh Makvana, Jaydev Unadkat, Mohsin Dodia, Vandit Jivrajani, Prerak Mankad, Deepak Punia, Hardik Rathod.
Time: 09:30 IST |04:00 GMT
(Shiamak Unwalla, reporter with CricketCountry, is a self-confessed Sci-Fi geek who loves cricket more than cricketers. His Twitter handle is @ShiamakUnwalla)