Vidarbha Ranji cricket team’s historical and maiden semi-final appearance in this format has been hailed by those associated with Vidarbha Cricket Association for quite some time. The coaches and players applauded Vidarbha’s performance this Ranji season where Vidarbha registered five outright wins, the last one being over Kerala in the quarter-finals. Vidarbha thrashed Kerala in Surat by 412 runs to reach their first semis.
The Hitavada’s Principal Correspondent Paritosh Pramanik spoke to a few coaches and players on Vidarbha’s successful run this season.
Excerpts
SULAKSHAN KULKARNI
(Former coach)
The professionals have done really well this season. The team under Faiz Fazal clicked as a unit. They are among the very few teams that has taken 20 wickets on any given track be it a seamer friendly, a spinning or a flat track. The team had the strength to beat any side with their all-round performance.
This historical moment is due to the residential academy which VCA started around a decade ago. Most of the players are products of this academy. It all started in 2009 and the results are here today.
Playing with professionals taught the lads the finer points of the game. Three players inside the boundary line make a big difference in players’ confidence.
Similarly, professional coaches like myself, Sairaj Bahutule, Paras Mhambre and now Chandrakant Pandit...VCA believed in professionalism.
This season Vidarbha had five outright wins which is really commendable. I am very happy for the side and wish them luck for the next two games. They have the strength to win the title.
PREETAM GANDHE
(Former captain)
It is the result of hard work put in by the association and of course by the players. This bunch is a very talented lot. The team clicked as a unit this time and above all we had a very talented coach in Chandrakant Pandit.
He is a taskmaster and reads the game very well. He plays a role of a mental trainer during the training sessions and during matches.
Most of the players in the current team are products of the residential academy. Players like Aditya Sarwate, Apoorv Wankhade and others have come from the grind of junior level.
Earlier, we had difficulty in opening order where we had only one batsman. But now Faiz and Sanjay both are doing well. Sanjay was not among runs last season but the selectors and management kept faith in him. That gave him confidence and today he is one of the best openers we have. The semis and the final (if we reach) will be battle of nerves. It won’t be like who has strong line-up. All the four teams are strong. The team which will keep their emotions in control and play strongly will come out victors. I am sure Vidarbha will reach till the end.
S Badrinath
(Former captain)
I am very happy for the Vidarbha team that they qualified for the semi-finals. The team has been doing well for quite some time and they have the quality to be on the top. I would like to mention a few names that have really done well...some of whom with I have played. Opener Faiz Fazal is a great talent and so is Akshay Wakhare. This season Rajneesh Gurbani has done exceedingly well and I hope the team achieves greater heights. What I want to see is Vidarbha players’ representation at the higher level. They have talent and players can play at the next level. I wish the team luck and hope the players play at the highest level.
Pravin Hinganikar
(Former captain)
It is a great news that Vidarbha qualified for Ranji semis for the first time. The team is really playing well this season. It shows how fast Vidarbha cricket is improving.
The five outright wins in the competition shows the domination of the team. Similarly, Faiz Fazal and Sanjay Ramaswamy have batted really well. To win any match, good batting from top order is essential and both the openers have performed above expectation. I think this team can give a tough challenge to Karnataka in the semi-finals.
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