VID Vs KER Day 1 Highlights, Ranji Trophy Final: Solid Malewar, Classy Karun Take Vidarbha To 254/4 At Stumps In Nagpur

Vidarbha Squad: Atharva Taide, Dhruv Shorey, Parth Rekhade, Danish Malewar, Karun Nair, Yash Rathod, Akshay Wadkar(w/c), Harsh Dubey, Nachiket Bhute, Darshan Nalkande, Yash Thakur, Akshay Wakhare, Akshay Karnewar, Siddhesh Wath, Aditya Thakare, Shubham Kapse, Aman Mokhade, Mandar Mahale, Yash Kadam, Praful Hinge, Umesh Yadav

Kerala Squad: Akshay Chandran, Rohan Kunnummal, Varun Nayanar, Sachin Baby(c), Jalaj Saxena, Mohammed Azharuddeen(w), Salman Nizar, Ahammed Imran, Aditya Sarwate, MD Nidheesh, Nedumankuzhy Basil, Basil Thampi, Vishnu Vinod, Baba Aparajith, Fazil Fanoos, Vathsal Govind, Shoun Roger, Vaisakh Chandran, Krishna Prasad, Anand Krishnan, KM Asif

Vidarbha vs Kerala Toss will take place soon as well as the playing XIs will be revealed. Stay tuned.

In the Ranji Trophy 2024-25 semifinals, Vidarbha and Kerala secured their spots in the final, with one team making history and the other sealing back-to-back appearances. Vidarbha defeated defending champions Mumbai by 80 runs, bundling them out for 325 while defending a target of 406.

Yash Rathod’s superb 151 set up the win, while Harsh Dubey’s five-wicket haul ensured Mumbai never recovered. Meanwhile, Kerala created history by reaching their maiden final after securing a narrow two-run first-innings lead against Gujarat. The match ended in a draw, but Kerala’s advantage was enough to take them through.

The final is set for Vidarbha to take on Kerala at the VCA Stadium in Nagpur from February 26 to 30.

Kerala have won the toss and opted to bowl first against Vidarbha.

Vidarbha (Playing XI): Dhruv Shorey, Parth Rekhade, Danish Malewar, Karun Nair, Yash Rathod, Akshay Wadkar(w/c), Akshay Karnewar, Harsh Dubey, Nachiket Bhute, Darshan Nalkande, Yash Thakur

Kerala (Playing XI): Akshay Chandran, Rohan Kunnummal, Sachin Baby(c), Jalaj Saxena, Mohammed Azharuddeen(w), Salman Nizar, Ahammed Imran, Eden Apple Tom, Aditya Sarwate, MD Nidheesh, Nedumankuzhy Basil

The pitch is grassy with a lot of grass and a slight touch of dampness, so it appears darkish. It's a red soil track that's slightly hard, so the pace bowlers will get some lift and the ball will seam early on. Spinners will come into the picture later on. Overall, a good surface for the bowlers.

Here we go! Dhruv Shorey and Parth Rekhade stride out to open for Vidarbha in the Ranji Trophy final. The first hour could be a testing one, with plenty in the pitch to keep them on their toes.

Nidheesh MD takes charge with the new ball, ready to make the most of the conditions.

Nidheesh goes full and wide outside off, Parth leaves it alone, no fuss. Carry’s good to the keeper, but wait… Nidheesh is screaming for LBW! Looked like it jagged back in, but the umpire isn’t interested.

Kerala aren’t backing down, though, they go for the review. Ball-tracking rolls in… three reds. That’s out! Huge early strike.

Darshan Nalkande comes to the crease.

VID 0/1 (0.2)

Tom Eden Apple joins in the attack at the other end.

He begins with a fuller delivery outside off, well deflected to point by Shorey. Follows it up with a short-of-a-length on the body, pushed towards short midwicket.

Then the tester, back of a length outside off, Shorey plays inside the line and is dismissed. Yet another full one outside off, inviting the drive, and this time Shorey's forward defence is dismissed once again. A probing opening.

VID 0/1 (2.4)

Finally, a boundary! Full on the pads, and Shorey flicks it neatly through square leg to get both his and Vidarbha’s account underway.

Next, a full delivery outside off, driven firmly but straight to mid-off. Another full one, this time straying down leg, Shorey helps it along to fine leg for a single. Nalkande joins the action, dabbing one to point to get off the mark.

Nidheesh digs one in, back of a length on middle, Nalkande remains firm, deflects it to mid-on. The Kerala pacers till now have been a bit short with their opening spell, not quite making the batters play enough.

And there it goes, one out of the bag! A little surprise short ball, and Nalkande is hooked. Puts in all his strength but fails to catch it—picks it right up to deep square leg, who doesn't even need to move an inch. Easy take, and Kerala strike again.

Danish Malewar comes to the crease.

Four runs! Nidheesh short-picks it, and Shorey isn't letting it go, cuts it past point, sprinting away to the boundary.

Next ball, huge shout for LBW. Nidheesh is on his feet, arms raised, and he's selling it big time. Sachin Baby invests and goes for the review. Ball-tracking comes up… missing.

Outside off with a length back, nothing given. Comes forward with a full one on off, and Shorey responds with a classic front-foot defence.

Kerala looking for more, and Aditya Sarwate walks in.

Beginning with a back-of-a-length ball to the right-hander, ably defended. A little turn on the second one. Danish throws his hands up at it but has no bat. Sarwate makes it fuller on the stumps, and Danish comes forward to deadbat it. Neat start, maiden over to the left-arm spinner first up!

Just a single from Nidheesh’s fifth over, tight lines keeping things in check. Sarwate continues from the other end. Shorey leans into a full delivery and punches it to mid-off for an easy single

Kerala are all over Vidarbha, and they’ve got another one.

Eden Apple Tom gets changed ends, coming in for Nidheesh, and bang, he hits right away! Shorey goes fishing outside off, gets the inside edge, and Azhar makes it look sensational, diving to his right to pouch a gem.

Karun Nair walks in at No. 5 to stabilize things. In the meantime, Basil NP replaces Sarwate and sends a tight maiden to get the proceedings started.

VID 28/3 (15)

NP Basil bowls to Danish Malewar, back of a length outside off, guided towards backward point for a single.

Eden goes a touch too full, and Danish doesn’t need a second invitation, drilled straight down the ground for four! A quick single to point next ball, keeping things ticking.

Here comes the bumper. Short of a length, climbs on Karun, and thuds into the gloves. That looked nasty for a second, but no damage done—it drops safely, and he sneaks a single.

Oh, that’s a gift. Short, wide, and Danish says, “Thank you very much!” Cracks it through point, racing away to the boundary.

Vidarbha showing some fight now as Eden charges in for his eighth over of the day. Four runs! Karun tries to pull his bat away from a short-of-a-length delivery, but it catches the edge, flies off the side, and sails over the keeper for a boundary. Not the most convincing shot, streaky, but they all count!

Meanwhile, Nidheesh keeps things tight at the other end. Another maiden from the frontline pacer, building the pressure.

Karun and Malewar are settling in nicely. The pitch is already changing, the moisture is drying out, the green tinge is fading, and batting conditions are improving. Kerala’s bowlers have their work cut out now.

With the session winding down, they’ll be eager to break this partnership and snatch at least one more wicket before the break.

Sarwate steams in for his fourth over. Danish stands firm, meeting the first delivery with a solid front-foot defence. Big appeal next ball. The ball pops up to silly point, and there’s a shout for both LBW and a catch. But no bat involved, and ball-tracking would’ve sent it sliding down leg, nothing doing.

Karun looks to be proactive, steps down the track, and works it into midwicket for a quick single.

The stand between Karun and Malewar is building nicely, and Karun is making it clear that batting has become a lot easier.

Aditya Sarwate returns for the 27th over, looking to break through. Fifth ball, tossed up, full and wide outside off, Karun isn’t holding back! He gets under it and launches it over extra cover, sending the first six of the innings soaring into the stands.

Vidarbha have mounted a comeback in a steady manner after being shaken early at 24 for 3 inside the first hour. Danish Malewar has been in command, and Karun Nair is also getting accustomed to the wickets, with the two adding a vital 57-run partnership for the fourth wicket.

Kerala chose to bowl first, relying on the morning dampness, and it paid off at first, Nidheesh hit twice in succession, and Eden Tom chipped in with one more to leave the hosts in a spot of trouble.

But since the dampness has disappeared, batting has been relatively easy.

The bowlers have been well-behaved, restraining the scoring, but the question is, can they dislodge this partnership in the next session? Catch us at 12:40 PM for all the action from the post-lunch play.

Welcome back for the post-lunch session. The players are back in the middle, and we are set for live action. Eden Apple Tom starts proceedings, and he’s right on the money.

A beauty first up, pitched outside off, skidding through low and beating Karun Nair’s defence. Follows it up with a length ball outside off, holding its line as Nair watches it through to the keeper. Solid start from Kerala as they look to break this growing partnership.

Eden keeps things tight, just a single off his over. Sarwate back into the attack. A touch short on the stumps, Malewar picks it up early and whips it through midwicket—three runs, nicely placed. Now, here comes the big shot! Tossed up on leg stump, Malewar steps across, gets underneath it, and sends it sailing over mid-on for six. Clean strike.

Sarwate floats up the second ball of the 38th, and Malewar isn’t holding back. Dances down the track and launches it straight over the bowler’s head for a six. That brings up his fifty off 104 balls, a well-crafted knock so far. But Vidarbha will be hoping he kicks on for a big one.

Nidheesh returns to the attack, but Vidarbha keep the scoreboard ticking. Kerala need a breakthrough to shift the momentum. Danish clips the first ball through midwicket and scampers back for a couple.

Jalaj continues from the other end, sending down his fourth over. He floats one up outside off, Malewar gets well forward and smothers it. Danish finds a gap at midwicket and picks up a single, bringing up a hard-fought 100-run partnership between the two.

Basil NP joins the attack. A firm drive straight back at him, and he cops a blow to the hand while trying to stop it. The physio is out for a quick check, some medical attention needed here.

Kerala will be pleased that despite the long partnership, they haven’t let these two get away with it. On the flip side, Vidarbha will be content knowing these two have spent so much time at the crease. One thing’s for sure, the pitch has changed significantly from the one we saw in the first hour of play today.

At just 21 years old, Danish Malewar is making a remarkable impact in his debut Ranji Trophy season. He’s now scored his second first-class century, an incredible achievement.

On the very first ball of the 58th over from Sarwate, Malewar confidently goes back in his crease and whips it through midwicket for a four, bringing his score to 103 off 167 balls. A brilliant knock from the young talent.

After a rocky beginning, this partnership is putting Vidarbha firmly back in the contest. Danish Malewar has just brought up his second century in the Ranji final, while Karun Nair continues to look solid at the crease.

Kerala are quickly running out of ideas, as the pair have already added 146 runs. They've been able to milk the bowling with ease, and with the conditions easing, the ball softening, and the pitch becoming more favorable, it's now a great time for batting. We'll be back at 3 pm for the final session.

Karun drives a length ball outside off with finesse, sending it racing through the covers for a beautiful boundary.

Can Kerala break this solid stand early? Nidheesh starts the proceedings with the ball, and Malewar is on strike. He’s sitting pretty at 109 off 186, while Karun Nair stands firm at the other end on 49 off 124. The pressure is on Kerala as they look for a breakthrough.

A single to cover brings up another half-century for Karun Nair. The veteran batter has been in sensational form over the course of this domestic season. Will he get to his triple figure mark?

VID 182/3 in 62 overs

Eden continues. Full toss outside off, and Karun doesn't miss! He creams the drive past mid-off for a boundary. Vidarbha’s 200 up now.

Akshay Chandran comes in to replace Jalaj. Danish gets an inside edge on the next delivery, and it trickles through square leg for a single.

Danish Malewar and Karun Nair continue to anchor Vidarbha’s innings, with Malewar pushing his score to 124 off 214 balls. In the 70th over, he confidently flicked Akshay Chandran’s first delivery for a boundary.

The left-arm spinner tried to tighten the screws, but Malewar’s defense remained solid. Nair, steadfast at the other end on 65 off 150, is providing excellent support. Vidarbha are in a commanding position as the pair steadily build towards a formidable total.

Basil NP comes into the attack, delivering a length ball on middle stump, which Danish Malewar flicks comfortably wide of mid-on for a couple.

Akshay Chandran continues from the other end, with Danish and Karun collecting three singles off the over, keeping the scoreboard ticking.

NP Basil bowls to Karun Nair, and it's a solid defensive display from Nair. The first delivery is a fuller length outside off, and Nair leans forward, softly dropping it to the off-side.

The next ball is a length delivery just outside off, and once again, Nair prods forward, comfortably defending it to the off-side.

Vidarbha's control continues as Malewar (131*) and Nair (77*) extend their partnership beyond 200. The pair remains unshaken, casually collecting a couple of singles in Sarwate's quiet 79th over.

Kerala's bowlers are struggling to find a breakthrough, with both batsmen looking comfortable as the day winds down. With 11 overs remaining, Vidarbha will be looking to further solidify their dominance.

A massive wicket for Vidarbha at a crucial moment! Karun Nair is run out just 14 runs shy of his century. Nair leaves a delivery from Eden Apple, and the wicketkeeper fumbles the collection. As Nair sprints for a single, Malewar denies the run, but it's too late, Sachin Baby delivers a direct hit to send Nair packing for 86. What a twist in the game.

A single off the last ball of the day and Vidarbha finish on 254/4 in 86 overs at Stumps on Day 1. Danish Malewar remains unbeaten on 138. It has been a pendulum swinging day, with Vidarbha ahead at the close.

Thank you so much for joining us, and we will see you soon. Until next time, goodbye and take care.