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On Friday, February 21, a resilent Kerala side sealed their maiden Ranji Trophy final after they drew the semi-final clash against Gujarat in Ahmedabad. Kerala side achieved a spot in the final with the barest of margins after they had posted a two-run lead in the first innings. With this win, the team from southern part of India made through their first final in the 68 years history since the inception in the domestic cricket circuit.
Opting to bat first, Kerala manged to post 457 runs on the board, courtesy a magnificent 177 from M Azharuddeen. Gujarat fought hard on the back of Priyank Panchal’s 148 and crucial 70-plus runs from Aarya Desai and Jaymeet Patel respectively. Entering the final day of the prestigious domestic tournament at 429/7, Gujarat needed just 29 runs to take a first innings lead, but pressure from Kerala’s Aditya Sarwate helped them restrict the home side at 455 in 174.4 overs to leave them two runs short of the mark.
Kerala make history; reach first-ever Ranji Trophy 2024-25 final
As the Kerala side made through their only second semi-final appearance, the visitors were left frustrated. While they started the day needing three wickets, their opponents, Gujarat just needed 28 runs to defend. But a disciplined bowling effort from Aditya Sarwate, helped them go past the challenge. Furthermore, with three runs required for the hosts to take a first inning lead, 11th number batter Arzan Nagwaswalla went for a lofted shot but missed to cross the boundary ropes as Sachin Baby got him at first slip.
Later on, at 114/4 in their second innings, Kerala and Gujarat agreed to draw, confirming Kerala’s historic final berth. The victory followed the suit to the similar manner in which Kerala reached the semi-final with a one run lead against Jammu and Kashmir in the first innings.
The Sachin Baby-led side will now take on Vidarbha in the summit clash after the latter stunned Mumbai by 80 runs in Nagpur. Shardul Thakur scored a valiant fifty but it was left-arm spinner Harsh Dubey who stole the limelight with a brilliant five-wicket haul as Vidarbha secured a commanding 80-run victory over defending champions Mumbai to reach the Ranji Trophy final here on Friday
