Ranchi: Delhi captain Ayush Badoni continued his extraordinary run in the Ranji Trophy by cracking a second consecutive double century, an unbeaten 210 against Jharkhand on the second day of their third-round match at the JSCA International Stadium.
Badoni reached his double hundred in only 216 balls, hitting 28 fours and three sixes, and was still batting on 210 off 228 balls when Delhi declared at 515 for 5. He shared a mammoth 334-run partnership with Sumit Mathur, who was unbeaten on 150 off 253 balls at the declaration. In reply, Jharkhand reached 131 for 4 at stumps on day two, with Utkarsh Singh batting on 53, leaving Delhi firmly in command.
The innings followed Badoni’s career-best 217 against Gujarat last week in Delhi’s first home game of the season at the Air Force Ground in Palam. Before that, he had made 85 against Bengal, meaning the 26-year-old has now amassed more than 500 runs in four innings this season at an average of 168.66. This was his fourth first-class double century overall.
In doing so, Badoni became the 21st Indian to score double centuries in consecutive first-class innings, joining Delhi greats Virat Kohli and Gautam Gambhir in an elite list. No batter in first-class history has achieved the feat more than twice. The first Indian to do it was KS Ranjitsinhji, after whom the Ranji Trophy is named, and he remains the only Indian to have recorded back-to-back double hundreds twice, in 1900 and 1901.
Badoni’s rise as a leader has been just as striking. Two years ago, a mid-series shake-up handed him the Delhi captaincy, and he responded with his maiden Ranji double hundred on captaincy debut at the Kotla. He has since grown into the role, and his form this season — built on tackling pace and spin with equal assurance — has put him firmly in the conversation whenever the national selectors look for middle-order depth.
Former India A batter Priyank Panchal summed up the mood around Badoni’s run, noting that quality middle-order batters who handle spin and pace equally well are emerging in Ranji cricket, and that rewarding such players bears results for the national team, as in the case of Devdutt Padikkal.
Elsewhere in the round, Bengal made 350 against Kerala at Mangalapuram, with Shahbaz Ahmed scoring 121, before Mohammed Shami took 3 for 20 to leave Kerala at 101 for 6.
Brief scores: At Ranchi — Delhi 515 for 5 declared (Badoni 210 not out, Mathur 150 not out) vs Jharkhand 131 for 4 (Utkarsh Singh 53 not out).
