Sarfaraz Khan produced a moment of fielding brilliance to turn the Ranji Trophy clash against Railways on its head as Mumbai sealed a dramatic 106-run victory at the Brabourne Stadium on Thursday, their fourth outright win in a row.
Chasing 372, Railways had fought back from 83 for 5 through a 167-run sixth-wicket stand between Eshaan Goyal and Zubair Ali, and at 250 for 5 at the final drinks break a draw looked the likely outcome. But off the first ball after the break, Musheer Khan induced Goyal into a paddle sweep, and Sarfaraz — stationed at first slip — sprinted across towards leg slip and completed a stunning diving catch to break the stand.
It was a redemption of sorts for Sarfaraz, who had earlier effected a run-out but also dropped a catch. The catch, which left him in some discomfort after the dive, sparked a collapse: Railways lost their last five wickets for 15 runs in under 12 overs as Mumbai wrapped up the win in the final hour.
Goyal had made 103 off 201 balls with 11 fours and a six, while Zubair Ali struck 115 off 117 balls with 14 fours and five sixes, the pair batting in contrasting styles to lift Railways from trouble. But once the stand was broken, Musheer had Zubair caught at long-off by Suryansh Shedge, and Shams Mulani and Tanush Kotian joined the act — Kotian taking a sharp one-handed catch at short midwicket — as Railways were bowled out for 265 in 77.2 overs.
Mulani finished with four for 69, Musheer took three for 42 and Kotian two for 93, while captain Siddhesh Lad admitted afterwards that the thought of shaking hands for a draw had crossed his mind before Sarfaraz’s intervention. “What Sarfaraz did was outstanding. He’s a special fielder. He had dropped a catch earlier but wanted to do something for the team. It was an absolutely special effort,” Lad said.
Mumbai had set up the win earlier in the day. After posting 396 in their first innings and bowling Railways out for 259, they declared their second innings at 234 for 4, with opener Divyaansh Saxena scoring a maiden first-class hundred — 100 not out off 136 balls — and Angkrish Raghuvanshi making 79. Saxena celebrated his milestone by raising his bat, letting out a roar and dropping to one knee.
The win, worth six points, took Mumbai to 27 points at the top of Elite Group D — the highest tally of any team at the end of the first leg of the season. The 42-time champions now switch their attention to white-ball cricket, travelling to Kolkata for the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, which begins on November 14.
Also read: Dubey’s 14-wicket match haul seals Vidarbha’s innings-and-20-run win over Madhya Pradesh | Tripura stun former champions Saurashtra by 133 runs in historic Ranji Trophy upset
