[Watch] Yash Thakur is ecstatic after cleaning up Kulwant Khejroliya as Vidarbha enter Ranji Trophy 2024 final
Vidarbha beat Madhya Pradesh by 62 runs in the first session on Day 5 of the Ranji Trophy 2024 semifinal 1 to confirm their berth in the final of the tournament.
Day 4 of the contest ended with Vidarbha needing three wickets for victory and Madhya Pradesh 93 runs. Resuming their second innings at 228-6 in pursuit of 321, MP were bowled out for 258 on Wednesday, March 6, at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Ground in Nagpur.
The winning moment for Vidarbha came when Yash Thakur bowled Kulwant Khejroliya for 11, with the Madhya Pradesh tailender dragging a delivery outside off stump back onto his stumps.
Thakur let out a roar after claiming the last wicket in the Ranji Trophy 2024 semifinal as Vidarbha celebrated a terrific come-from-behind triumph. Here's the video:
At stumps on Day 4, Saransh Jain was batting on 16 and Kumar Kartikeya on 0. Kartikeya was the first wicket to fall on Day 5, bowled by Aditya Thakare before he could open his account. Madhya Pradesh suffered a double blow as Anubhav Agarwal was also knocked over by Thakare for a duck.
Jain’s vigil ended on 25 off 69 when he was clean-bowled by Thakur, who also ended Khejroliya’s stay at the crease to confirm Vidarbha’s place in the Ranji Trophy 2024 final. The two-time Ranji Trophy champions take on Mumbai in the final from March 10 to 14.
How Vidarbha fought back in the Ranji Trophy 2024 semifinal
Vidarbha won the toss and opted to bat first in the first semifinal of the Ranji Trophy 2024.
They were knocked over for 170, with Karun Nair’s 63 being the only score of note. Umesh Yadav and Thakur then claimed three scalps each as Vidarbha held Madhya Pradesh to 252 in their first innings despite Himanshu Mantri’s 126.
In their second innings, Vidarbha had lost half their side for 161, but Yash Rathod (141) and Akshay Wadkar (77) added 158 for the sixth wicket to lift the team. Vidarbha ended up with 402 despite Anubhav Agarwal’s five-fer.
Set to chase 321, Madhya Pradesh were in the contest, thanks to fighting half-centuries from Yash Dubey (94) and Harsh Gawli (67). However, Thakur (3-60), Akshay Wakhare (3-42), Aditya Sarwate (2-56) and Thakare (2-45) combined to bowl Vidarbha to victory.