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It’s Pandit vs Muzumdar as history set to take a new course

article_imageRANJI FINAL PREVIEW
Last updated on 21 Jun 2022 | 09:50 AM
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It’s Pandit vs Muzumdar as history set to take a new course

Madhya Pradesh are no pushovers, but they would very well know why they are not favourites for the final despite boasting such a fantastic record this season

It was in 1998-99 when Madhya Pradesh had last made it to the final of the Ranji Trophy. You have to go back all the way down to 1953 when they last won a title. A lot of water has flown under the bridge since then, history has taken a new meaning and cricket has changed from a leisure amateur sport to a professional business. 

Chandrakant Pandit, the former Mumbai player and coach, who was the captain of Madhya Pradesh in 1998, is back in the MP dressing room to helm another surreal transformation after turning the leaf in Vidarbha skies. 

23 years ago, it was the same Chinnaswamy Stadium where Sunil Joshi’s band of boys got MP down the road thanks to a classic spin masterclass from Vijay Bharadwaj. Would that hurt Pandit now? Probably Not. He is a bonafide superstar coach now and right at the top of the pile when it comes to the demand of his services. But then, as he often repeats, history clearly remembers the winners and there would be no let-up as far as his ambition of making Madhya Pradesh the Ranji Trophy champions.

The likes of Kumar Kartikeya and Saransh Jain have pulled off some heist in the tournament already and if they can do it all over again in the final, another new chapter in Indian domestic cricket is not too far away. However, envisioning that, especially when the opposition have has many as 41 titles in their kitty, is easier said than done. MP would know that the Amol Muzumdar-coached Mumbai would bank on their experience and culture to strike the rod when the redness is at its peak. Because like Australia, they know how to win titles and that often becomes the differentiator in big games.

Mumbai have Dhawal Kulkarni and Tushar Deshpande in their ranks to take care of the pace department whereas Shams Mulani is already the highest wicket-taker in the season with 37 wickets in five matches that includes five fifers and two 10-fers. Such has been the dynamic of their bowling unit that oppositions have found it too hard to go by. Madhya Pradesh are no pushovers, but they would very well know why they are not favourites for the final despite boasting such a fantastic record this season.

Their batters further complimented the efforts. Sarfaraz Khan continued his golden run of form, Yashasvi Jaiswal already has three centuries in the last two games, and on top of that, they have Prithvi Shaw, whose imperious nature has no bounds. And think what, we still haven’t got into explaining the qualities of Arman Jaffer, whose evolution as a batter is right in the same ballpark as his Uncle, Wasim Jaffer - a bonafide legend in the Ranji Trophy.

For Madhya Pradesh, the likes of Shubham Sharma, Himanshu Mantri, and Rajat Patidar forge a fantastic top-order. The resilience they have shown to help the side come thus far is the bedrock on which they would expect to align their virtues. It was the same trait that helped Himanshu Mantri land a blow against Bengal in the semis and it was the same virtue that Shubahm S Sharma employed to leave Punjab in a shell in the quarters. Another tag-team effort will lead them to fulfill a collective dream that they so very well deserve. A lot, however, will depend on how the weather sustains.

Both sides know that June is never the right time to play cricket in India. Especially in Bangalore, where rain is a frequent visitor. After the series decider between India and South Africa was abandoned, the jury was kind of out but there is reasons to be optimistic. The nature of Bangalore rain is such that you can very well predict the pattern. Afternoons and evenings are mostly affected by the rain gods pouring down and with Karnataka State Cricket Association having one of the best draining facilities in the entire country, things seem a little bit stream-lined at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium. 

Probable XIs:

Mumbai: Prithvi Shaw (c), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Armaan Jaffer, Suved Parkar, Sarfaraz Khan, Hardik Tamore (wk), Shams Mulani, Tanush Kotian, Tushar Deshpande, Dhawal Kulkarni, Mohit Avasthi

Madhya Pradesh: Yash Dubey, Himanshu Mantri (wk), Shubham S Sharma, Rajat Patidar, Aditya Shrivastava (c), Akshat Raghuwanshi, Saransh Jain, Kumar Kartikeya, Puneet Datey, Anubhav Agarwal, Gaurav Yadav

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