For 92 years, the Ranji Trophy was a peak beyond the reach of Jammu & Kashmir who could barely get a glimpse of its glorious top. However on February 28, at the KSCA Stadium in Hubballi, coach Ajay Sharma and captain Paras Dogra led the Himalayan state to their maiden ascent to the summit of Indian domestic cricket. By beating the eight-time champions Karnataka on their own turf, J&K haven't just won their maiden Ranji title, they completed a fairytale story that signals the latest tectonic shift in the Indian domestic cricket landscape.
The victory also sees J&K become the latest team to have their name engraved on the coveted 92-year-old trophy for the first time, taking their well-earned seat in the continuum of Indian cricket history.
J&K's victory is also a reminder of the silent democratic revolution that has been spreading through the Indian domestic circuit over the last decade. The Valley outfit's title triumph makes them the fifth team in the last ten years to lift their maiden Ranji crown, joining an elite group of ‘New Kings' who have dismantled the traditional monopolies held by the traditional big-boys in the competition.
The trend also highlights a narrowing divide between the Elite and Plate divisions, showcasing how unity, single-minded focus and long-term development structures can ultimately outweigh star power.
Here is the story of the four other teams in the last decade that broke the glass ceiling to claim their first-ever Ranji Trophy title.
1. Gujarat - 2016-17 Champions
Led by Parthiv Patel, Gujarat ended their 83-year long wait for the Ranji Title in 2017 with a squad that had a core group who progressed through the state's youth cricket ranks together. Priyank Panchal, who led the scoring charts for the tournament that season with 1310 runs coming at an eye-catching average of 87.33, was one of that core-group along with his opening partner Samit Gohel who contributed with 914 runs.
Gujarat were undefeated in the group stages that season, but with only two wins they were tied on points with Tamil Nadu. It was their impressive batting performances that saw them progress via a better Net Run Rate.
Then came the historic chase in the Final. Facing a colossal Mumbai side who were gunning for their 42nd title, Gujarat found themselves chasing a daunting 312 on the final day. Parthiv Patel produced a masterclass, scoring 143 off 196 balls to steer his team to victory. It remains the highest successful chase in a Ranji Trophy final.
With that win, Gujarat also became the first team to win all three major domestic titles (Ranji, Vijay Hazare, and Syed Mushtaq Ali), completing the domestic ‘triple crown' and signaling that the power center was shifting West.
2. Vidarbha - 2017-18 Champions
Led by Faiz Fazal, Vidarbha shed their underdog tag in 2018 as they claimed their maiden Ranji Trophy in a season defined by clinical discipline and a relentless bowling attack. The architect of their campaign was the young pacer Rajneesh Gurbani, who finished as the second-highest wicket-taker of the tournament with 39 scalps. Gurbani's performances in the knockout stages were legendary, including 12 wickets in the semi-final against Karnataka followed by a historic hat-trick in the Final against Delhi, becoming only the second bowler to achieve the feat in a Ranji summit clash.
Vidarbha's journey that season was a masterclass in consistency, they topped Group D with four wins and remained unbeaten throughout the tournament. Fazal led the way with the bat, finishing as the season's second-highest scorer with 912 runs. The team also boasted the solid presence of veteran Wasim Jaffer who scored 595 runs to guide a relatively inexperienced middle order through high-pressure situations.
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What's also important to note is that the entire unit was put together by the legendary coach Chandrakant Pandit who had only just been appointed that year by the State Association.
In the Final at Indore, Vidarbha faced a formidable Delhi side led by Rishabh Pant. After Gurbani's hat-trick restricted Delhi to 295, Vidarbha's batters, led by Akshay Wadkar's maiden century, put up a massive 547. They eventually chased down a tiny target of 29 with nine wickets to spare, sparking celebrations for a region that had waited 61 years for glory.
Vidarbha went on to successfully defend the title the following year, proving their maiden triumph was no fluke, but the result of a sustainable winning culture
3. Saurashtra - 2019-20 Champions
Having fallen at the final hurdle on three previous occasions, Saurashtra led by Jaydev Unadkat finally ended their ‘finalist jinx' in 2020 to capture their maiden title. The campaign was a personal crusade for Unadkat, who produced arguably the greatest individual bowling season in the tournament's history. He claimed 67 wickets, a record for a fast bowler in a single Ranji season, falling just one short of the all-time record held by spinner Ashutosh Aman.
Saurashtra's path to the trophy was a testament to their domestic resilience, relying on the batting duo of Sheldon Jackson (809 runs) and Arpit Vasavada (763 runs) to post match-winning totals. Their semi-final against Gujarat was a classic, where Unadkat's seven-wicket haul in the fourth innings dragged his team into the title decider.
The Final against Bengal at Rajkot was decided via a first-innings lead. On a sluggish pitch, Saurashtra posted 425 thanks to a marathon century from Vasavada (106 off 287 balls) and a stoic 66 off 237 balls from Cheteshwar Pujara who was battling a throat infection and bouts of dizziness. The resilient victory, coming just days before the sporting world was halted by the pandemic, signaled Saurashtra's arrival as a new powerhouse, a status they would cement with a second title in 2023.
4. Madhya Pradesh - 2021-22 Champions
In a poetic twist of fate, Chandrakant Pandit returned to the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, the same ground where he had lost the final as MP captain in 1999, to lead them to glory as a coach.
Led by Aditya Shrivastava, MP's campaign was built on the back of a sensational batting core. Rajat Patidar was the standout, finishing with 658 runs, including a vital century in the final. He was ably supported by Yash Dubey and Shubham Sharma, both of whom crossed the 600-run mark.
In the bowling department, left-arm spinner Kumar Kartikeya was the breakthrough star, claiming 32 wickets to dismantle opposition lineups throughout the knockouts.
In the Final, MP faced Mumbai, a side still gunning for their 42nd title back then. Despite Mumbai posting 374, MP responded with a colossal 536, fueled by centuries from Dubey, Sharma, and Patidar.
They eventually chased down 108 on the final day with six wickets to spare. The sight of the MP players carrying Pandit on their shoulders represented more than just a win, it was the closing of a 23-year-old emotional circle. The win also cemented Pandit's status as the most successful coach in domestic history having won six titles with three different teams.
ALSO READ | A Himalayan Effort: Tracing Jammu & Kashmir's Monumental Run To An Imminent Maiden Ranji Trophy Title
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