Ranji Trophy 2015/16: Team of the Week (Round 5)

The breeding ground of Indian Cricket “Ranji Trophy“ has finished its 5th round. This week saw 8 out of the 12 matches ending in clear results. There were some blistering hundreds, all round performances and match winning five-fors.Here’s a look at the aspiring cricketers of India who made it to the Ranji Team of the week – comprising those who turned in match-winning performances for their teams in the round, or made valuable contributions to help their team close out a vital draw.

#1 Openers

HP’s Ankush Bains is a promising prospect as a wicket keeper-batsman

Faiz Fazal: The experienced campaigner from Vidarbha played a handy knock of 120 against Maharashtra, which enabled them to post a solid total of 332 in the first innings. He also picked a wicket in the first innings of Maharashtra. Vidarbha ultimately won the match by 82 runs.

Ankush Bains: The 19-year-old Wicket Keeper batsman from Himachal Pradesh notched up a quick fire ton. He scored 114 runs in a knock which included 11 fours and a six. His opening partnership of 210 runs with the other centurion Prashant Chopra laid the perfect platform to help Himachal defeat Tripura by an innings and 6 runs.

#2 Middle Order

Robin Uthappa’s blistering knock helped Karnatak register their first win of the season

Robin Uthappa: The flamboyant cricketer played a superb knock of 160 runs of just 128 balls with 25 fours and 4 sixes. 124 runs came just from the boundaries. His heroics enabled Karnataka to declare at a total of 318 from 63 overs. Chasing 357 for victory, Rajasthan fell short by 92 runs.

Paras Dogra: The only double century of the week came from Paras Dogra. His innings of 209 helped Himachal Pradesh set a mammoth total of 561. With 23 fours and 6 sixes, his innings had a strike rate of 86.36.

Rajat Paliwal: The right handed batsman scored centuries in both the innings. His efforts of 121 and 103 went in vain as Saurashtra successfully went on to chase the challenging total of 302 set by Services with 4 wickets to spare.

Baba Indrajith: His knock of 151 in the first innings helped Tamil Nadu secure an 8 wicket victory over Railways. Tamil Nadu scored 328 in the first innings which proved to be good enough for Railways thanks to the century of Indrajith.

#3 Bowlers

Orissa’s Basant Mohanty rampaged through Delhi, forcing the table-toppers to a draw

Gurkeerat Singh Mann: Recently picked for the Indian ODI side, Gurkeerat continued on his merry way and bagged a 9-wicket haul with his off breaks against Andhra. He returned with the figures of 4/14 in the first innings and 38/5 in the second innings, helping Punjab to claim a 7 wicket win.

Mihir Hirwani: The son of the great Narendra Hirwani and the leg spinner from Madhya Pradesh grabbed a 9-wicket haul against Baroda. Mihir played a pivotal role in MP’s 87 run-victory over Baroda on their home ground.

Basant Mohanty: The drawn encounter between Odisha and Delhi featured an inspiring bowling performance from the Right Arm Medium fast bowler. He picked up 6/39 in the first innings, backed by 3 wickets in the second.

Saurabh Kumar: The left arm orthodox bowler from Uttar Pradesh claimed a 10-wicket haul in the match with 5 wickets in each innings. UP defeated Gujarat by a massive margin of 155 runs which was made possible by Saurabh’s brilliant bowling.

Jaydev Unadkat: Having featured in the Indian senior team and many IPL matches, Unadkat is pretty experienced at such a young age of 24. He used all his experience when he took 8 wickets in the victory over Services. His 6 wickets in the first innings restricted Services to a meagre total of 254.