Vidarbha strengthen position at top with crushing win

By Paritosh Pramanik

NAGPUR, Nov 19

THE result was inevitable. The only question was when and not how.

Defending champions Vidarbha completed the formalities crushing Baroda by 144 runs on the fourth morning in their Elite Group A Ranji Trophy match here at VCA’s Jamtha Stadium on Wednesday.

Resuming the day at a precarious 73-5 and needing 203 for a win, Baroda innings folded an hour before lunch in 18.4 overs on the final day to hand Vidarbha a huge victory. The crushing win put Vidarbha firmly on the top of Group A with 25 points. Vidarbha have recorded three outright wins and have taken first innings lead twice.

The performance of the team is praiseworthy as they came out all guns blazing after being shot out for 169 in first innings. The bowlers ripped Baroda apart as the hosts took a slender three runs first innings lead.

In their second innings, the batters showed maturity and played with purpose with Athrava Taide, Dhruv Shorey, man of the match Yash Rathod and Ravikumar Samarth all scoring runs to set a mammoth target of 276 runs for Baroda.

Darshan Nalkande then bowled a dream spell taking four wickets for seven runs on the third evening, breaking the back of Baroda. The visitors could not recover as Nalkande completed his First Class career’s first five-wicket haul taking the wicket of Ninad Rathva seven minutes into the fourth morning. The fast bowler thus became on second Vidarbha bowler after Umesh Yadav to take a fifer in Ranji, Vijay Hazare and Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. The 27-year-old pacer, playing his 12th First Class match, bowled on the coin and forced overnight batter Rathva (10) to poke one to wicketkeeper Akshay Wadkar who dived to his right to complete the catch. Debutant spinner Ganesh Bhosle then sent back a well-set Sukirt Pandey (37) on his first delivery of the day. 

The tweaker’s ball spun enough to get a faint edge from Pandey’s bat and landed in the safe gloves of Wadkar.

Baroda captain Atit Sheth (29*) and Raj Limbani (21) delayed Vidarbha’s celebration with a 50 runs eighth wicket partnership but Parth Rekhade broke the stand getting the latter caught by Samarth at square boundary.

Bhute wrapped it off taking the wickets of Mahesh Pithiya (5) and Bhargav Bhatt (0) in succession to complete the rout.