Railways are Ranji Trophy champions

Railways shattered a 50-year-old jinx to clinch their maiden Ranji Trophy title. They beat five-time winners Baroda by 277 runs on the penultimate day of the final in Delhi on Saturday.

The elusive victory was especially sweet for Railways as they were defeated by the same opponents in last year's final by just 21 runs.

Spinner Kulamani Parida dismissed last Bardoa batsman Rakesh Patel five overs after the lunch break to signal the start of Railways's celebrations.

Amidst the beating of drums, the jubilant Railways players indulged in a victory dance on their home ground, the Karnail Singh stadium, as Baroda succumbed meekly in face of a daunting 391-run winning target, their innings folding up at 113 in 36.3 overs.

Though a man-of-the-match award was not officially announced, no one deserved it more than Railways's left-arm- spinner Murali Kartik, who finished with eight wickets in the final and capped it with an invaluable 69-run knock, the highest in hosts' second innings.

Railways had sealed the match in their favour, despite scoring a modest 253 in the first innings after winning the toss, by skittling out Baroda for 169. After gaining a crucial 84-run first innings lead, they added 306 runs more in their second knock as Baroda were left the task of chasing a daunting victory target on a turning wicket in the second innings.

But no Railways player must have imagined in his wildest dreams that Baroda would make things so easy by hardly putting up any resistance.

Nayan Mongia (0), who was promoted up the batting order -- as regular opener Satyajit Parab was indisposed and put on drips last evening, could be blamed for starting the slide, being dismissed in the very first over when he snicked a Harvinder Singh delivery to wicketkeeper Abhay Sharma.

Baroda were then reduced to 5 for two when the other opener Connor Williams (1) was dismissed in similar manner, this time off right-arm seamer Zakir Hussain.

Skipper Jacob Martin (8) and Tushar Arothe (1) were out cheaply off Hussain and it was the hard-hitting Atul Bedade who put up a semblance of fight by scoring a quickfire 59.

That there was no devil in the wicket was proved by the way Bedade batted. He showed remarkable application and raced to his 50 off just 51 deliveries with the help of as many as eleven boundaries.

He whacked Parida for three consecutive fours in the bowler's first over of the day but the spinner exacted his revenge as he had Bedade caught at mid-wicket by Raja Ali with the score reading 92 for five in the 25th over.

Kartik, who was introduced late into the attack in the next over, wasted no time and struck with his very first delivery of the day, catching an ill-looking Parab off his own bowling without a run being added to the total.

And he did not stop at that. The new man in, Yousuf Pathan was foxed by the flight of Kartik's last ball of the over as he holed out a simple catch to Hussain at mid-on, also on 92.

Scoreboard

Railways (1st innings): 253

Baroda (1st innings): 169

Railways (2nd innings): 306

Baroda (2nd innings):
C Williams c Sharma b Zakir 1
N Mongia c Sharma b Harvinder 0
A Bedade c Raja b Parida 59
J Martin lbw b Zakir 8
T Arothe c Sharma b Zakir 1
A Bhoite c Khanolkar b Parida 12
S Parab c and b Kartik 0
Y Pathan c Zakir b Kartik 0
R Patel b Parida 6
V Buch c Harvinder b Kartik 10
S Joshi not out 2
Extras (b-5, lb-6, nb-3) 14
Total (all out in 36.3 overs) 113
Fall of wickets: 1-1, 2-5, 3-38, 4-42, 5-92, 6-92, 7-92, 8-95, 9-106.
Bowling: Harvinder Singh 9-3-23-1, Zakir Hussain 9-1-39-3 Kulamani Parida 9.3-3-30-3, Jayprakash Yadav 3-3-3-0, Murali Kartik 6-4-7-3.

Mail Cricket Editor