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The Ranji Trophy 2023-24, which concluded on March 14, 2024, saw Mumbai clinch their record-extending 42nd title after defeating Vidarbha by 169 runs in the final at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. This victory ended Mumbai's eight-year wait for the championship, as their previous win came back in the 2015-16 season.
Musheer Khan's fantastic hundred (136) and Shreyas Iyer's 95 helped Mumbai to post an improbable target of 538 for Vidarbha in the fourth innings.
Akshay Wadkar's century (102) showed some kept his side in the game as Vidarbha fought valiantly in their second innings. But Wadkar's wicket in the 130th over led to a terrible collapse as his side was bundled out for 368 runs within the next five overs.
The high-octane final capped off a thrilling Ranji Trophy season, which saw a total of 134 matches played in a span of 69 days. Across all these games, there were countless performances which contributed for a side's success.
From batters who piled on the runs to bowlers who ripped through opposition lineups, this season of the Ranji Trophy witnessed several remarkable performances. Let's delve into the top five performers who shone the brightest in the recently concluded Ranji Trophy 2024.
#5 Ricky Bhui (Andhra Pradesh)
Andhra Pradesh were involved in an unwanted controversy when Hanuma Vihari was stripped off from captaincy just after one Ranji Trophy 2024 match. The state association then handed the leadership duty to Ricky Bhui, who led the side from the front.
Bhui began his campaign with a remarkable 175 against a strong Bengal attack. He then smashed two back-to-back centuries against Assam and Chhattisgarh.
The seasoned campaigner finished the tournament as the highest run-getter of the tournament with 902 runs at an immaculate average of 75.16, including four centuries. He also hit the most fours (97) among all the batters in the entire competition.
#4 Ajith Ram (Tamil Nadu)
Alongside Sai Kishore, Ajith Ram proved to be a vital cog for Tamil Nadu. Thee team reached the semi-final but lost the fixture against eventual champions Mumbai.
Playing only his second first-class season, Ajith showed an impressive level of consistency. The left-armer went wicketless just once and bagged at least two wickets in 12 of the 13 innings he bowled in the tournament.
With his guile and disciplined bowling, the 25-year-old took 41 wickets, the joint second-highest in Ranji Trophy 2024. His best performances came in group matches against two top-quality sides- Karnataka and Punjab, where he took nine wickets in both games.
#3 Sachin Baby (Kerala)
It seems like Kerala's stalwart Sachin Baby is aging like a fine wine. The 35-year-old, who had a sensational Ranji Trophy 2022/23 has followed it up with another superb season.
The former Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) batter had a poor start to his Ranji Trophy 2024 campaign, scoring just 77 runs in his first five innings. However, once he got his first century of the season against Assam, there was no stopping him.
He kept on piling up runs and registered the joint-most 50+ scores (8) in the entire tournament. The left-hander amassed a total of 830 runs (second-best) at an unbelievable average of 83.00.
#2 Tanush Kotian (Mumbai)
Tanush Kotian's performance in the Ranji Trophy 2024 was nothing short of phenomenal. He emerged as a true all-rounder, playing a pivotal role in Mumbai's 42nd title win.
It is not often that a tailender ends up having a first-class season with more than 500 runs to his name. However, that high was the quality shown by Kotian, who played a couple of crunch innings for Mumbai, including a world-record 10th-wicket partnership of 232 runs with Tushar Deshpande.
Kotian really upped his game against top-quality sides and took a total of 29 wickets at a great average of 16.96. He bagged seven wickets in the summit clash against Vidarbha.
Apart from this, the 25-year-old ended up as the second-highest run-getter for Mumbai, mustering 502 runs at an average of 41.83, including five half-centuries and a hundred against Baroda.
#1 R Sai Kishore (Tamil Nadu)
R. Sai Kishore emerged as the wrecker-in-chief for Tamil Nadu's bowling attack in the Ranji Trophy 2024. He spearheaded their charge with a phenomenal haul of 53 wickets in just nine matches, establishing himself as the leading wicket-taker of the tournament by a significant margin.
His bowling average of 18.52 stands as a testament to his consistent ability to pick up wickets throughout the season. The current Gujarat Titans (GT) player was quite remarkable in the way he led Tamil Nadu in the tournament, while keeping his personal game on point every time.
Similar to his partner-in-crime, Ajith Ram, Kishore also went wicketless just once in the tournament, taking at least two wickets in 14 of the 15 innings he bowled.
Moreover, he even notched up two half-centuries in the competition, including a 60 in the quarter-final against Saurashtra, where he came to bat as a nightwatchman.
With the kind of consistency and temperament Kishore has shown in the past, it won't be a surprise to see him don the India colours soon.
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