It was a nail-biting finish in Trivandrum, where the game went down to the wire. Despite extending play to force a result, the match ended in a dramatic draw—a result that seemed improbable when Kerala were reeling at 47/5. Meanwhile, in the West, Vidarbha outclassed Rajasthan with a commanding 221-run victory, and Baroda crumbled under the pressure of chasing 617, handing Maharashtra a massive 439-run win.
In Salem, Tamil Nadu cruised to a 209-run victory over Chandigarh, with their spinners wreaking havoc to bowl out the visitors for just 193 in the fourth innings. Elsewhere, Jharkhand triumphed over Chhattisgarh by 8 wickets, while two more games—Andhra vs Pondicherry and Assam versus Railways—ended in draws on Day 4. With these results, the sixth round of Ranji Trophy matches came to a close.
Kerala vs Madhya Pradesh
Chasing a daunting target of 363, Kerala found themselves in deep trouble at 47/5. However, a remarkable lower-order resistance from Aditya Sarwate, Mohammad Azharuddeen, Jalaj Saxena, and Baba Aparajith ensured they walked away with a hard-fought draw. The turning point came with a crucial 74-run partnership between Azharuddeen and Jalaj, which revived Kerala’s hopes of salvaging the match. After Jalaj’s dismissal, Azharuddeen teamed up with Sarwate for a vital 90-run stand that took the game away from Madhya Pradesh. Despite extending play to take the final two wickets, MP’s bowlers fell short. With the match ending in a draw, Kerala secured the extra point due to their first-innings lead.
Rajasthan vs Vidarbha
Rajasthan were bowled out for just 107 while chasing a target of 329, as Vidarbha’s spin duo wreaked havoc. Left-arm spinner Harsh Dubey continued his stellar form, claiming a five-wicket haul to remain at the top of the wickets chart, while off-spinner Akshay Wakhare chipped in with three wickets. Vidarbha’s commanding 221-run victory was built on a strong comeback after conceding a 100-run first-innings deficit. Captain Akshay Wadkar led the charge with a gritty century, anchoring his team to 428/7 before declaring on the final morning. Yash Rathod played a crucial knock of 98, while Nachiket Bhute contributed a brisk 87, studded with boundaries.
Maharashtra vs Baroda
Maharashtra’s delayed declaration raised some eyebrows, but their decision to set a target of 617 proved more than enough. Baroda, led by Krunal Pandya, crumbled under pressure, managing just 177 in 36 overs on the final day. Mukesh Choudhary shone with a maiden first-class five-wicket haul, while Rajneesh Gurbani and Ramakrishna Ghosh shared the remaining five wickets, taking three and two respectively.
The emphatic 439-run victory offered some consolation to Maharashtra in an otherwise challenging season. For Baroda, this defeat complicates their chances of securing a knockout berth.
Tamil Nadu vs Chandigarh
Chandigarh’s chase of 403 never found the momentum it needed, despite skipper Manan Vohra’s valiant unbeaten century. The target remained out of reach as Chandigarh folded for 193, suffering a 209-run defeat. Tamil Nadu’s left-arm spin duo, Sai Kishore and Ajith Ram, were the stars of the show, sharing eight wickets equally between them. Earlier, Vijay Shankar’s commanding 150 in Tamil Nadu’s second innings set up a comfortable declaration. With this win, Tamil Nadu remains firmly at the top of their group and on track for a quarterfinal spot.