Ranji Trophy finals: Rahane, Musheer's gritty knock helps Mumbai post 141

Mumbai are well on their way to enjoy complete dominance over Vidarbha in the Ranji Trophy final at the Wankhede StadiumAt the end of Day Two the juniorsenior combo of onedrop batsman Musheer Khan and skipper Ajinkya Rahane kept the screws ready to be tightened on Vidarbha after the host bowlers combined splendidly to bowl out the visitors for just 105Prithvi Shaw departs earlyRahane and Musheer who stayed unbeaten on 58 and 51 respectively helped Mumbai post 1412 in the second innings shrugging off the early loss of Prithvi Shaw 11 and Bhupen Lalwani 18 for an overall lead of 260 runsAlso Read IN PHOTOS WPL 2024 Indian players statisticsAjinkya Rahane and Musheer Khan during their 107run stand PicsAtul KambleThough Rahanersquos cool and composed nature and his presence in the dressing room played a vital role in the teamrsquos smooth journey to the summit clash on the individual front he was woefully short of runsOn Monday he scored his second halfcentury in his eighth game of the 202324 edition of the tournamentThe scoreboard read 342 when the 85Test veteran joined MusheerThough Vidarbharsquos attack of pacers Yash Thakur 125 Test man Umesh Yadav 017 and leftarm spinner Harsh Dubey 146 had only a couple of dismissals in their favour it didnrsquot actually reflect how tough it was for Rahane and Musheer Both were beaten on several occasions but managed to survive Rahane who smashed four fours and a six during his 109ball knock employed a patient approach till he reached 40 following which he pulled leftarm spinner Aditya Sarwate over the midwicket fence Four balls later a copybook cover drive off Yadav found the boundary ropes for the Mumbai captain to get his 57th firstclass halfcentury Musheer too fought hard and showcased good temperament during his 135ball stay to score his second firstclass fifty with the help of three fours The quarterfinal double centurion against Baroda and Rahane broke Vidarbharsquos spirit with a 107run unbeaten standEarlier Vidarbha could add just 74 runs to their overnight score of 313 to be bundled out for 105119run first innings leadPacer Dhawal Kulkarni 315 landed the first punch by sending back inform opener Atharva Taide 23 caught by wicketkeeper Hardik Tamore The visitors were then troubled by offspinner Tanush Kotian 37 who clean bowled Yash Rathod 27 and leftarm spinner Shams Mulani 332 their efforts eventuating in a 119run lead for MumbaiMeanwhile Mumbai vicecaptain Mulani revealed that the team celebrated the skipperrsquos halfcentury like they would do for a hundred ldquoWe know how important this small milestone was for him I donrsquot think a Ranji Trophy fifty is that important for a player of his stature But for the team it was very important that he stays on the wicket His presence is much more important for us The way he batted was amazing We are very happy for himrdquo Mulani said of RahaneBrief scoresMumbai 224 amp 1412 A Rahane 58 M Khan 51 v Vidarbha 105 Y Rathod 27 T Kotian 37 D Kulkarni 315 S Mulani 332