Ranji Trophy 2023-24: Mumbai favourite in David vs Goliath quarterfinal clash against Baroda

From being the fiercest west zone rivalry in the early 2000s, it’s faded into perhaps one of the least sought-after zonal clashes. Come Friday and the clock will possibly turn back as Mumbai and Baroda face each other in the Ranji Trophy quarterfinal.

Be it performance, legacy or experience, Mumbai enters the game at the Sharad Pawar Cricket Academy ground as rank favourite. But having qualified for the knockouts for the first time in over a decade, Vishnu Solanki-led young Baroda outfit will certainly be keen to do a Goliath on Ajinkya Rahane’s David.

More than being bothered about Saurashtra’s lesser-known outfit, Mumbai will be bothered about getting its act right, especially in the middle order. While a sensational bowling performance – with the unit picking 138 of a maximum possible 140 wickets – has helped it sail through the league stage with a whopping 37 points, the batting woes have been evident.

Barring Shivam Dube, none of the other nine batters having been tried out, including captain Rahane, have been effective. With Dube missing in action from a side-strain, Rahane will be keen to build on the confidence he gained with an unbeaten fifty against Chhattisgarh two weeks ago. It will be interesting to see if Musheer Khan – the India U-19 allrounder – can fill in the void created by Dube.

Rahane, the captain, however, has been effectively using a versatile pace attack. With Shardul Thakur and Tushar Deshpande having rejoined the squad last week, Rahane will continue to have a problem of plenty. In all likelihood, the duo along with Mohit Avasthi – will carry Mumbai’s pace attack.

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“It’s a good headache to have when you have to choose from such a variety of options. The bowlers did well even in the last season. Picking 20 wickets almost every game, it’s a massive thing and that’s how you think of winning matches and the championship,” Rahane said.

The pace unit – along with the spin allrounder duo of Shams Mulani and Tanush Kotian – will have to restrict Baroda’s in-form Jyotsnil Singh, Shashwat Rawat and Shivalik Sharma. Should the in-form batters continue their good run, Baroda will bank on veteran Bhargav Bhatt – the only survivor from its last appearance in a Ranji final in 2010-11 – and offie Mahesh Pithiya to try and spin their web around the Mumbai batters.