Nagpur, Feb 28 (IANS) Vidarbha’s left-arm spinner Harsh Dubey carved his name in Ranji Trophy history on Day 3 of the final against Kerala at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium, becoming the highest wicket-taker in a single season of the tournament to bowl out the visitors on 342 handing his side a minor lead of 37 runs.
Dubey achieved the milestone of 69 wickets when he dismissed M.D. Nidheesh after Tea, his third wicket of the innings. Earlier in the day, he had trapped Aditya Sarwate for 79 and removed Salman Nizar, the team’s leading run-getter this season, leg-before just before lunch. With this, Dubey surpassed Bihar’s Ashutosh Aman, who had taken 68 wickets in the 2018-19 season, setting a new record with 69 scalps in the 2024-25 edition.
Dubey’s extraordinary season has been instrumental in Vidarbha’s campaign, particularly his match-winning performance in the semifinal against Mumbai, where he claimed seven wickets in the second innings. His consistency has placed him in an elite club of bowlers, making him only the sixth player to go past 60 wickets in a season.
Additionally, Dubey has been a valuable contributor with the bat, amassing 472 runs in 17 innings, including five half-centuries, making him only the fourth player in Ranji history to achieve the rare all-rounder’s double of 450-plus runs and 50-plus wickets in a single season.
Kerala had resumed the day at 131/3, with Sarwate and captain Sachin Baby at the crease. The day began on a promising note for Kerala, with Sarwate and Baby adopting a cautious approach against a disciplined Vidarbha attack.
Sarwate, who played a crucial knock of 79, was the first to fall when Dubey had him caught by Danish Malewar at short midwicket. The wicket triggered a middle-order collapse as Salman Nizar, Kerala’s most consistent batter this season, was trapped leg-before by Dubey for 21 just before the lunch break.
Sachin Baby, however, held firm, forging key partnerships to keep Kerala’s innings alive. He added 59 runs with Mohammad Azharuddeen before the latter was dismissed for 34, trapped lbw by Darshan Nalkande. Baby then stitched another valuable stand of 46 runs with Jalaj Saxena, keeping Kerala’s hopes of taking a first-innings lead intact.
Just as Kerala looked set to push past Vidarbha’s total, they suffered a major setback when Baby fell agonizingly short of a century. The Kerala skipper, who had battled hard for 235 balls and struck 10 boundaries in his innings of 98, edged a delivery from Parth Rekhade to Karun Nair at slip. His dismissal derailed Kerala’s progress, and they lost their last four wickets for just 18 runs.
Jalaj Saxena contributed a resilient 28, while Eden Apple Tom (10) and Nidheesh (1) failed to provide much lower-order resistance. Kerala’s innings folded at 342, handing Vidarbha a slender but vital lead of 37 runs.
For Vidarbha, their bowlers put in a collective effort, with Darshan Nalkande, Harsh Dubey, and Parth Rekhade picking up three wickets each, while Yash Thakur chipped in with one. Dubey’s figures of 3/88 not only helped his team gain the upper hand but also solidified his record-breaking season.
Brief scores:Vidarbha 379 all out in 123.1 overs (Danish Malewar 153, Harsh Dubey 12 not out; MD Nidheesh 3-61, Eden Apple Tom 3-102) lead Vidarbha 342 all out in 125 overs (Sachin Baby 98, Aditya Sarwate 79; Harsh Dubey 3-88, Parth Rekhade 3-65) by 37 runs
–IANS
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