Ranji Trophy: Mumbai cricket team makes it two out of two with bonus-point win over Andhra

MUMBAI registered their second consecutive win in the ongoing Ranji Trophy when they defeated Andhra by 10 wickets at the MCA-BKC ground on Monday.

Left-arm spinner Shams Mulani finished with a 10-wicket match haul while left-arm seamer Royston Dias took three wickets.

Andhra, who resumed on 164 for 5 on the fourth and final day, were bundled out for 244 runs, giving Mumbai merely 33 runs to chase for victory.

Andhra’s overnight batsman Shaik Rasheed, who was batting on 52 overnight, could only add 14 runs while Nitish Reddy, who was unbeaten on 22, added eight to his tally on Monday.

The proceedings didn’t take long on the final morning as Andhra surrendered to Mumbai’s bowling line-up before lunch.

Thereafter, it took only 8.4 overs for Mumbai openers Jay Bista and Bhupen Lawani to secure the win with a bonus point.

Mumbai had started their Ranji campaign with a win over Bihar in Patna, and skipper Ajinkya Rahane said the team will aim to play the same brand of ‘courageous’ cricket.

“We have to be courageous. It is a long tournament and one will only win games when bowlers start to take wickets. The first aim is to take the first innings lead, in four days there are few games which provide outright results. I never believe in playing safe cricket. One has to be courageous, if one wants to achieve something,” Rahane said.

After two big wins, Mumbai would like to remain consistent throughout the season. The skipper said he has told his team to be in the moment and play as per the conditions. Their top order has managed to get starts but none have managed to convert it into a three-figure score. But Rahane doesn’t consider it a concern going ahead.

“Both the openers are new. These guys have done well in club cricket. It’s all about giving freedom to players. They also know their mistakes, nobody wants to get out intentionally and these boys are learning. They have an attitude to learn and we also keep talking to them,” he added.

Brief Scores: Mumbai 395 & 34 for no loss beat Andhra 184 & 244 (Shaik Rasheed 66; S Mulani 6/63, R Dias 3/45) by 10 wickets.

Dube added in Mumbai squad

All-rounder Shivam Dube has been added to the Mumbai squad that will play Kerala in their third Ranji Trophy in Thumba. Dube is currently part of the Indian side for the ongoing T20I series against Afghanistan. Dube hit two unbeaten half-centuries to take India home in the first two games.

However, Shreyas Iyer won’t be part of the Mumbai team as he will be joining the Indian Test squad on January 20 in Hyderabad.

Want to play 100 Tests: Rahane

Rahane wasn’t part of the South Africa tour and hasn’t been picked for the Test squad for the England series either. But the middle-order batsman hasn’t given up hope and aims to play 100 Tests.

“I obviously want to win the Ranji Trophy and the bigger aim is to play 100 Test matches,” the 85-Test veteran hoped.

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