Vidarbha captain Akshay Wadkar smokes century in Ranji Trophy final
Vidarbha skipper Akshay Wadkar smoked a stunning ton in the fourth innings of the 2024 Ranji Trophy final against Mumbai. This was his maiden century this season as he scored 102 off 199 balls (9 fours, 1 six). While Wadkar returned unbeaten on 56 at stumps on Day 4, he touched the three-figure mark on the final day. Here are his stats.
A captain's knock from Wadkar
Chasing a stiff target of 538, Vidarbha were off to a decent start as Wadkar arrived with the scorecard reading 133/4. He joined forces with Karun Nair (74) as the duo powered Vidarbha past 200 with a 90-run stand. The Vidarbha skipper was then involved in a 133-run stand with Harsh Dubey. The former fell to Tanush Kotian soon after completing his ton.
A look at his FC numbers
Wadkar, who managed just five runs in Vidarbha's first innings, has raced to 3,143 FC runs. Playing his 51st match in the format, the wicketkeeper-batter averages around 50. While this was his ninth ton in the format, the tally also includes 17 fifties. 146* reads his best figures in the format.
His numbers this season
En route to his ton, Wadkar raced past 600 runs (now 637) in the ongoing season with his average being 39.81 While this was his maiden ton this season, the tally also includes seven fifties. Only Karun (690) will finish the season with more runs for Vidarbha. Notably, Wadkar played a brilliant 77-run knock against Madhya Pradesh in the semi-final.
How has the match proceeded?
Vidarbha bowled Mumbai out for 224 in the first innings. Shardul Thakur scored 75. In response, Vidarbha fell for 105. Shams Mulani, Tanush Kotian, and Dhawal Kulkarni each took three scalps. Mumbai scored 418 in their second innings, riding on Musheer Khan's 136 and Shreyas Iyer's 95. Chasing 538, Vidarbha have crossed the 350-run mark with four wickets in hand.
