File image of Shardul Thakur and Ajinkya Rahane© AFP
In the Ranji Trophy final, Mumbai are eyeing their 42nd title. They are facing Vidarbha and are in a strong position. The final is also an emotional one for the Mumbai team as on of their veterans Dhawal Kulkarni will retire at the end of the season. It was at the insistence of the team, Kulkarni put off his retirement till the end of the season. Shardul Thakur, who is also playing for Mumbai in the Ranji Trophy final revealed how Kulkarni helped him in his early days of struggle.
“It (playing his last FC game) was (an) extremely emotional moment for him and me also, because I have watched him since childhood. He has helped me also at times with my bowling. When I did not have money to buy the shoes, he gave me a few pairs of shoes also. So, he has helped me a lot,” Thakur told reporters on Sunday.
“I love to play in tough situations, tough conditions. The kind of life that I have lived travelling far from Palghar all the way to Mumbai with the kit bag in train. You know it was not easy. So, I think that has toughened me up. And whenever I face a tough situation, challenging situation, it’s no different. I just use that mindset that I had as a kid growing up,” he said.
Meanwhile, Senior left-arm spinner Shams Mulani feels that Mumbai team cannot afford to be complacent despite having an overall lead of 260 runs after two days in the Rnji Trophy final against Vidarbha.
Mumbai produced an all-round show on the second day at the Wankhede Stadium to take complete command, bowling out Vidarbha for a mere 105 in the first innings to earn a big 119-run lead.
In their second innings, Mumbai were jolted twice early on but skipper Ajinkya Rahane (58 not out) and Musheer Khan (51 not out) led a resolute fightback with an unbeaten 107-run stand for the third wicket to take second innings score to 141/2.
“Three days are left (in the game). We have not thought about anything else other than batting. Yes, we have got a healthy lead but we will look to build on it and see how we can improve and take the game away from them as much as possible,” Mulani told the media after stumps.
“Right now, we feel that we need to bat. There’s no target in mind because we are just thinking that it’s just 141. We are not thinking of the lead as of now. It’s just 141 for two and we will bat along — the game is still a long way to go,” he added.
Mulani said Rahane’s timely unbeaten fifty was worth celebrating like a century for the Mumbai dressing room.
“We celebrated like it was a hundred because we knew how important this small milestone for him is. For the team, for himself, in this situation, it was very important that he stays on the wicket,” Mulani said.
The domination for Mumbai was, however, set up by veteran Dhawal Kulkarni, who snaffled two key wickets on first day evening and bowled a measly spell of 11-5-15-3 while adding one more dismissal to his kitty.
Mulani said to see former India medium pacer Kulkarni excelling in his final game of his career was “emotional”.
“It was emotional moment for all of us. For him, obviously it was very emotional. But coming the way he did —he didn’t play the last four games but it didn’t feel like he has not played,” Mulani said.
With PTI inputs
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Hasibur Rahaman is a passionate sports journalist. He covers everything from cricket to field hockey, delivering up-to-the-minute updates and in-depth analysis of sporting events, both within India and on the international stage.
