To defeat Mumbai 224 and 418, Vidarbha 105 and 248 for 5 (Nair 74, Wadkar 56*, Musheer 2-38, Kotian 2-56) must score an additional 290 runs.
The Mumbai team maintained their lead in contention to win their 42nd Ranji Trophy, but Vidarbha’s bowlers put up resistance during a sluggish fourth day. The two primary obstacles that impeded Mumbai’s pursuit of victory were Vidarbha captain Akshay Wadkar and Karun Nair. However, Nair’s dismissal for 74 late in the day exposed one end of Vidarbha’s batting. Vidarbha, who had won the competition twice, concluded the day at 248 for 5, 290 runs short of their target of 538.
Vidarbha’s deliberate and sluggish batting demanded five difficult wickets from Mumbai, all of which were conceded to spin. Early in the day, it became evident that despite surrendering a first-innings lead, which could prove decisive in the event of a draw, Vidarbha did not wish to lose decisively, at least on the penultimate day of the championship. Despite their batters’ best efforts to play the long game, they managed to accumulate a mere 238 runs at a run rate of 2.64 in 90 overs.
The majority of the overs were delivered by Mumbai’s three spinners on a surface that provided ample turn. They attempted to use the irregular surface on both sides of the stumps but encountered resistance and an uneven bounce. In the nineteenth over, Mumbai lost their first wicket when Shams Mulani’s left-arm orthodox spin dismissed Atharva Taide (32) lbw following the morning’s first refreshments break. Two deliveries later, Dhruv Shorey (28) was driven down the incorrect line by offspinner Tanush Kotian, who also pegged his off stump back, reducing the team from 62 for 0 to 64 for 2.
Following lunch, Mumbai captain Ajinkya Rahane targeted Musheer Khan with his left-arm orthodox spin; Khan’s high-arm release provided the 19-year-old with ample lift and turn. However, when declared LBW, No. 3 Aman Mokhade (32) was taken in by a speedier, skippy delivery from Musheer. Yash Rathod then sought to dead-bat following the third wicket; however, his 39-ball vigil was cut short on seven when Kotian trapped the left-handed batsman inside his crease with a darting one and then successfully persuaded his captain to employ a review.
With the score at 133 for 4 and nearly half the day’s play remaining, Nair and Wadkar, the two most experienced batsmen for Vidarbha, bore the burden. With the exception of the 20th over, Nair had retired and had played extremely defensively all day. He frequently defended against the spinners by lunging forward, and he also appeared at ease on the back foot.
Aside from the sporadic ineffectual reverse sweep, Nair restricted his shots throughout the day. In addition, he withstood several gloved defensive shots that passed over the helmet-wearing close-in fielders and an umpire’s call that resulted in an LBW determination. Seven overs into the second new ball, he was eventually dismissed when Musheer received one that sailed across Nair’s outside edge and kissed it on its way to the wicketkeeper. Nair scored three fours in the course of his 240-ball innings.
Conversely, Wadkar executed a measured display of aggression in order to secure an unbeaten 56 off 91 balls at stumps. Having hit two fours in the first six balls of his innings, he constructed his strokes more around the quality of the deliveries. Wadkar effectively utilized the profundity of the crease to force balls short when the fatigued spinners struck them. After Nair fell, Wadkar reached his 18th first-class fifty in style by slapping Tushar Deshpande for six over backward point and ensured he would return on the final day alongside the No. 7 Harsh Dubey who showed glimpses of his aggressive style by smacking a six to long-on minutes before stumps.
