Vidarbha, Karnataka in the running for Ranji quarter-finals

Current champions Vidarbha and domestic giants Karnataka are in the running to make it to the quarter-finals of the Ranji Trophy.

With the last round league matches to be played from Monday, the quarter-final line-up is yet to be decided.

From this year, five teams from combined A and B Groups, two teams from Group C and one team from Plate group will go to the last eight of the coveted domestic tournament.

At present, Vidarbha are sitting on top of the combined A and B Groups' standings with 28 points, while Karnataka are at the second spot with 27 points.

Gujarat and Saurashtra are at the third and fourth place respectively with 26 points each while Madhya Pradesh, from Group B, are at the fifth position with 24 points.

 

Baroda, sitting at the ninth spot, would be aiming for an outright win against Karnataka at Vadodara, to keep their chances alive of making it to the quarter-finals.

If Karnataka post a win against Baroda, then their passage to the quarters will be easy.

The same thing will apply to Vidarbha when they clash with Saurashtra, at Rajkot.

Both the teams will go full throttle and aim for a win as a victory will boost their chances of making it to the last eight.

But, it also depends on results of Group B matches.

Vidarbha will be bolstered after having defeated 41- time Ranji champions Mumbai by an innings in their last game at Nagpur and knocking out the latter from the quarter-finals reckoning.

With veteran Wasim Jaffer scoring with consistency and spinners Akshay Wakhare and Aditya Sarvate in full form, Vidarbha look favourites to tame Saurashtra.

Meanwhile, the remaining two matches of the Elite A Group - Mumbai versus Chhattisgarh to be played here at the Wankhede Stadium and Railways versus Maharashtra at the Karnail Singh Stadium in New Delhi - are inconsequential.

All these teams are lying well below in the combined A and B Group standings and are already out of the reckoning to enter the last eight stage.

Mumbai will also be looking to put a spirited show to avoid relegation to Group C.

This has been a disastrous season for Mumbai as they have failed to register a single outright win. Their batsman have been out of form and bowlers have also not been able to recreate the magic.