Leading wicket taker after seven rounds of Ranji Trophy 2015-16

Leading wicket taker after seven rounds of Ranji Trophy 2015-16: Bowlers also play a very crucial role in the outcome of the games as much as the batsmen do. We have witnessed a number of excellent bowling performances in the first seven rounds of the Ranji Trophy 2015-16.

Players like Ravindra Jadeja, have gone on to pick up 5 or more wickets in an innings 6 times and 10 or more wickets in a match on 3 occasions. However, Vidharbha off-spinner Akshay Anil Wakhare is leading the pack with 45 wickets, sending down 396.1 overs and has given away 1,057 runs. Averaging 23.48 with an economy rate of 2.66 and a strike rate of 52.8, his best bowling performance has been 6/58 in an innings and 9/146 in a match. He has picked a ‘5-wicket’ haul 4 times.

Wakhare’s best bowling performance in an innings (6/58) was achieved in the second innings of the game against Maharashtra, played between 30^th October and 2^nd November 2015, at VCA Ground, Nagpur. Having had to chase 245 runs for a win in the last innings, Maharashtra had a tough time negotiating the Vidarbha spin bowling duo of the left-arm spinner, Aditya Sarwate (18.3-1-74-4) and the right-arm offie, Akshay Wakhare (22-5-58-6). They ended scoring just 162 runs and lost the match by 82 runs. Wakhare’s efforts came in a winning cause.

The sixth round game between Bengal and Vidarbha played at Jadavpur University Campus Second Ground, Kolkata, between 7^th and 10^th November 2015, saw Wakhare produce his best bowling performance in a match, picking up 9/146.

Restricting Bengal to 334 runs in their first innings, after they were put in, to bat, Wakhare picked up 4 wickets, giving away 85 runs in his spell of 31 overs at a miserly 2.74 economy rate. However, Vidarbha batsmen could score only 202 runs in their first knock and gave a lead of 132 runs to the opposition.

Bengal further consolidated their position by scoring 164 runs in their second innings and set up a tough target of 297 runs for Vidarbha to chase and win. Wakhare produced a brilliant bowling performance picking up the wickets of both the openers, Abhimanyu Easwaran (26) and Sayan Mondal (13), Bengal’s batting sensation, Sudip Chatterjee (1), Pragyan Ojha (6) and Ashok Dinda (2). In the process, he gave away 61 runs in his spell of 16.5 overs.

Vidarbha managed to score only 191 runs and Bengal won the game by 105 runs. Wakhare ended the match with figures of 53-10-146-9. Akshay also picked up 4/84 and 5/77 against Odisha, 5/113 and 0/39 against Delhi, 1/114 and 1/104 against Karnataka, 4/47 and 4/37 against Assam, 1/82 against Maharashtra in the first innings, 3/78 and 2/78 against Rajasthan.

With two more games to go in the league stage, Wakhare has the opportunity to pick up more wickets and stay at the numero uno position for the season.