Musheer Khan, the teenage brother of India’s new Test star Sarfaraz, converted his maiden first-class ton into a double hundred for Mumbai in the ongoing Ranji Trophy 2024 quarterfinal.
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Musheer was picked for the Ranji Trophy 2024 quarterfinal against Baroda after seniors Shreyas Iyer and Shivam Dube were both ruled out due to injuries.
Having made his first-class debut last year, Musheer came in with three first-class matches to his name, in which his highest score was 42. However, he has been in phenomenal form recently, having scored two centuries for India in the 2024 Under-19 World Cup in South Africa.
Batting first after winning the toss, Mumbai sent in Musheer at No.3 after the fall of Prithvi Shaw’s wicket for the team score of 57. As wickets kept tumbling around him, Musheer held one end up. Mumbai collapsed from 72-1 to 142-5, before wicketkeeper Hardik Tamore partnered up with Musheer to add 181 for the sixth wicket.
Finishing day one on 128, Musheer picked up from where he left on the second day. In an almost single-handed effort, the 18-year-old right-hander converted his century into a double ton, remaining unbeaten on 203 as Mumbai suffered a second collapse in their innings, going from 364-6 to 384-all out.
First FC hundred for Musheer Khan 🔥
He has smashed an important century for Mumbai in the quarter-final of the Ranji Trophy 👏#MusheerKhan #SarfarazKhan #Mumbai #RanjiTrophy #Cricket pic.twitter.com/PictVBTqSI
— Wisden India (@WisdenIndia) February 23, 2024
Musheer’s knock included 18 fours as he played at a decent strike rate of 56.86, even as the rest of the batters struggled to score freely, indicated by the innings run rate of 2.7.
It must be noted that Musheer is also more than a handy left-arm spinner. In the U19 World Cup 2024, he took seven wickets at an average of 26.5.
In what has been a productive period for the Khan family, Musheer’s brother, Sarfaraz, had made his much-awaited Test debut last week in Rajkot, scoring twin fifties in his first game.
Mumbai have won the Ranji Trophy a record 41 times, more than five times more than the next best team. Their last title, however, came way back in the 2015-16 season while their last final appearance came in 2021-22, the season right after the pandemic.
If they do reach the finals or go on to win the title this time, Musheer’s herculean effort will have had a big role to play in that.
Watch Mushir Khan’s double hundred:
https://x.com/BCCIdomestic/status/1761355021000876207?s=20
