“Win the toss and win the match” was the common refrain among the players participating in the ongoing Vijay Hazare tournament. All that changed with the flip of the coin on Saturday as Mumbai skipper Ajit Agarkar chose to bat on a strip where they defeated Karnataka in their last match in a low-scoring game. Everyone present here was stunned with Agarkar’s decision but Mumbai batsmen proved everyone wrong. Wasim Jaffer and Ajinkya Rahane put on a stand of 72 for the first wicket. The team built on that foundation and when Mumbai finished their innings at 295 for five, the match was almost in their pocket. Hosts Delhi were bundled out for a paltry 155. A 140-run victory margin suggested as to where Delhi stand vis-a-vis the top teams of the country.
Mumbai owe this victory to their senior-most batsman Jaffer. He showed everyone why he is still one of the best opening batsmen in the country, crafting his innings with gentle pushes interspersed with occasional well-dissected boundaries. He was unlucky not to have reached his century but his 92 laid the foundation for the rest of the batsmen to enjoy their stay. That’s exactly what Abhishek Nayar did.
Nayar exploded like a missile and destroyed the opponents’ attack with an unbeaten 72 off just 41 balls. His eight fours and two towering sixes were surely the right treatment for hosts’ second string attack which was without Ashish Nehra, who limped off the field mid-way through the game.
Delhi never looked in the contention as wickets kept falling at regular intervals. Shikhar Dhawan (34) Jagrit Anand (51) and Yogesh Nagar (30) could not convert their starts. Medium-pacer Kshemal Waingankar, with figures of 8-3-15-2, once again impressed the national selectors watching the game. Anup Revandkar chipped in with three wickets to complete Delhi’s rout.
Mumbai will now take on Bengal in the final, to be played at the same venue on March 12.
