Ranji Trophy 2024-25: Semifinals 1 & 2, Day 5 Review

Gujarat vs Kerala, Semi-final 1, Ahmedabad

At the start of Day 5, Kerala had only 28 runs to play with to restrict their opponents to secure their berth in what would be their maiden appearance in the final of the Ranji Trophy. All three of the remaining wickets to fall were courtesy of left-arm spinner, Aditya Sarwate, who ended up with a four-wicket haul. Kerala ended up magnifying their chances of playing in the final via the narrowest of margins; a two-run lead.

Gujarat bowled a total of 46 overs in a bid to make a match out of nothing. However, they ended up claiming only four wickets. Kerala played the waiting game successfully, with Rohan Kunnummal and Jalaj Saxena scoring 32 and 37*, respectively. It was a commendable effort by Saxena in particular, who sent down a gruelling total of 71 overs in Gujarat's first innings.

Gujarat: 455 all-out [Priyank Panchal 148 (237), Jaymeet Patel 79 (177), Aarya Desai 73 (118), Manan Hingrajia 33 (127), Siddharth Desai 30 (164), Jalaj Saxena 4/149, Aditya Sarwate 4/111]; Kerala: 114/4 [Jalaj Saxena 37 (90), Rohan Kunnummal 32 (69)]

Vidarbha vs Mumbai, Semi-final 2, Nagpur

Mumbai came into the final day of the game at 83/3, chasing 323 to get to their second consecutive final. Shivam Dube and Suryakumar Yadav departed early, leaving Mumbai reeling at 124/6. However, Shardul Thakur took on the responsibility of bailing out the side once again. Along with Shams Mulani, Thakur put up a brave front by going for the win.

Mohit Avasthi and Royston Dias at No. 10 and 11 scored 34 and 23. However, it was not meant to be for the defending champions. Harsh Dubey secured his seventh five-wicket haul in the current edition of the Ranji Trophy to lead Vidarbha to an 80-run victory in the final session of the day.       

Mumbai: 325 all-out [Shardul Thakur 66 (124), Shams Mulani 46 (94), Akash Anand 39 (143), Mohit Avasthi 34 (43), Harsh Dubey 5/127]