Red ball cricket returns, Faiz to lead Vidarbha Ranji team

Nagpur, Dec 30

After a gap of one year, the red ball cricket has made a comeback and Faiz Fazal who propelled Vidarbha into Rani Trophy victory on two occasions is once again leading the squad.

The senior selection committee of Vidarbha Cricket Associaiton (VCA)has selected the 18-member squad for first two Ranji Trophy matches against Kerala & Rajasthan to be held on January 13 to 16 and from January 20 to 23 respectively at Bengaluru. The selectors have included only two new faces in the form of off-spinner Ganesh Bhonsale and medium pacer Praful Hinge. However ,they are likely to warm benches in the presence of senior players.

Skipper Faiz Fazal will be playing his 126th First Class match (110 Ranji) when Vidarbha will face Karala. The team will depart on January 8. Vidarbha has been placed in Elite 'B' group along with Kerala, Haryana, Bengal, Rajasthan and Tripura.

It can be mentioned here that last season Ranji Trophy didn't take place due to Covid restrictions. This time all the matches will be played at Bengaluru.

Team

Faiz Fazal (C), Akshay Wadkar (VC), Atharva Taide, Ganesh Satish, Apoorva Wankhede,

Siddhesh Wath (WK), R.Sanjay, Mohit Kale, Yash Rathod, Akshay Wakhare, Aditya Sarvate, Akshay Karnewar, Lalit Yadav, Yash Thakur, Aditya Thakre, Praful Hinge, Siddhesh Neral and Ganesh Bhosale.