Danish Malewar of Vidarbha brought up his career-best score in first-class cricket in the final of the 2024-25 Ranji Trophy against Kerala.
Vidarbha adopted a bizarre strategy after Kerala captain Sachin Baby won the toss and opted to field at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium in Jamtha, Nagpur: they opened batting with Parth Rekhade and Dhruv Shorey.
Left-arm spinner Rekhade, a bowling all-rounder, shook Mumbai with his triple-wicket over in the semi-final. He had batted at five and nine on debut, against Hyderabad, and at three and nine in his second match, the abovementioned semi-final. It did not last, as MD Nidheesh trapped him leg-before with the second ball of the final.
Final, Vidarbha vs Kerala
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- Ball by ball Over
At this point Vidarbha threw another surprise into the mix. Darshan Nalkande, who batted at No.10 in the semi-final, came out at one-drop. From seven first-class matches, Nalkande has only 123 runs at 15.37 with a lone fifty. He hung around in night-watch mode, making a solitary run before he tried to hook Nidheesh and found deep square-leg.
The promotions reminded old-timers of the 2005-06 final, where Uttar Pradesh promoted Praveen Kumar to open against Bengal. Praveen hit his way to a 55-ball 48 and a 16-ball 15.
Eden Apple Tom, Nidheesh’s new-ball partner, had debuted in 2021-22, but this was only his third game in the format. He had Shorey caught behind, leaving Vidarbha reeling at 24-3.
Karun Nair joined 21-year-old Malewar, who had come out at No.4, at this point, and the pair assumed control as the match went on. They saw off the new ball, but perhaps more significantly, dominated the veteran Jalaj Saxena. At lunch, Vidarbha were 81-3. At tea, they were 170-3. By then, Malewar had already reached his second first-class hundred.
This was the third hundred for Vidarbha in Ranji Trophy finals. In 2017-18, wicketkeeper Akshay Wadkar, who is leading them this season, made 133 to help them beat Delhi.
No Vidarbha batter got a hundred when they beat Saurashtra in 2018-19 to defend their title: Akshay Karnewar’s 73 not out remained the highest score. Vidarbha again reached the final in 2023-24. Chasing 538, they were bowled out for 368, though not before Wadkar made 102.
Hundreds for Vidarbha in Ranji Trophy finals
| Score | Batter | Opposition | Venue | Season | Result |
| 133 | Akshay Wadkar | Delhi | Indore | 2017-18 | won by 9 wickets |
| 102 | Akshay Wadkar | Mumbai | Mumbai | 2023-24 | lost by 169 runs |
| 126 batting | Danish Malewar | Kerala | Nagpur | 2024-25 | ongoing |
Having debuted earlier this season, Malewar came into the match with 557 runs under his belt from eight matches, at 42.84. After tea, he went past his career-best score of 115 against Gujarat – the only match Vidarbha have not won outright this season.
Vidarbha were 222-3 at the time of writing, with Malewar on 127 and Nair on 74.
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