With this win, Jammu and Kashmir have carved for themselves a niche in history by progressing to the quarterfinals of the Ranji Trophy 2024-25. Strike off for the very first time ever in this state’s tally of achievements slot into the quarterfinals of the ongoing domestic tournament. Team Jammu and Kashmir, buoyed by their win against Mumbai in the Round League, were quite easily placed in the qualification bracket for the knockouts against Baroda.
This win was indeed a landmark moment in the history of cricketing in the region as it showed how the team stood strong, grew as a unit, and made it to the elite eight of the domestic tournament.
Qualification to Knockouts
Jammu and Kashmir made it to the Ranji Trophy quarter-finals following a win against Baroda and qualifying with seven other teams in the knockout stages. The qualified teams are as follows: Kerala, Vidarbha, Tamil Nadu, Haryana, Mumbai, Saurashtra, Gujarat, and Jammu and Kashmir.
Here is the knockout round match:
According to BCCI records, the teams will play according to the quarter-finals as outlined below:
Read More
Jammu and Kashmir vs Kerala
– Vidarbha vs Tamil Nadu
– Haryana vs Mumbai
– Saurashtra vs Gujarat
These quarter-finals will be played from February 8, but the venues for the matches are yet to be confirmed.
Stellar Performance by Off-Spinner Sahil Luthra
Sahil Luthra, the off-spinner from Jammu and Kashmir, played a pivotal role in the team’s historic run. In their fateful match against Baroda, Luthra’s performances were sublime as he turned the game in favor of Jammu and Kashmir. He took seven wickets in the match that their team won gloriously. His lethal spell on the fourth day of the match broke down Baroda’s resistance, as he took the first four wickets of the day to virtually dismantle the batting lineup of Baroda.
Luthra’s ability to generate turn and bounce left Baroda’s batsmen struggling, with several of them getting dismissed while attempting reverse sweeps. His performance was a key factor in ensuring that Baroda’s chase of 365 runs ended in failure, with the hosts only managing to score half of their target.
The Decisive Match: Baroda vs Jammu and Kashmir
It was a virtual knockout for both, and thus the match between Jammu and Kashmir and Baroda proved to be crucial. Mumbai had already booked a berth into the quarterfinals from Group A by winning against Meghalaya and therefore left either Baroda or Jammu and Kashmir fighting out for the final ticket. For Jammu and Kashmir, even a draw would have been good enough to qualify; however, for Baroda, a win was required, which, after all, was not done.
Jammu and Kashmir batted first, posting a total of 246 runs, and then bowled out Baroda for just 166 runs. With a lead of 80 runs, Jammu and Kashmir set Baroda a daunting target of 365 runs. Despite Baroda’s efforts, they could only reach 176, falling short by 189 runs, and thus, Jammu and Kashmir advanced to the quarter-finals.
Services Remarkable Record in Ranji Trophy
In another remarkable feat during the league stage, the Services team broke the record by making a huge chase.
This victory will have no match as they chased down a target of 376 runs without losing a single wicket. Suraj Vashisht was the orchestrator with an unbeaten 154 runs, while Shubham Rohila hammered 209 off 270 balls. This chase now stands as the second-highest successful chase in Ranji Trophy history since Railways chased down 378 runs against Tripura last season.
This achievement of the Services team is noteworthy not only because of the enormous target that they chased but also because of did so without losing a single wicket. The record chase in history’s first-class history is the highest successful first-class chase without losing a single wicket, thus creating a milestone in Ranji Trophy history.
ALSO READ: Yuvraj Singh Applauds Abhishek Sharma’s Record-Breaking Knock
