Ranji Trophy: Rahane retires hurt, but not before hurting Chhattisgarh’s chances with 42nd First-Class hundred
The celebrations were somewhat muted when Ajinkya Rahane brought up his first century of the season with a single. He raised his bat, showed a thumbs up to his teammates, and went about his business.
Throughout his 315-minute stay at the crease, not once did Rahane look jittery. His calm and composed demeanour not only helped him score his 42nd First-Class ton, but also guided Mumbai, reeling at 38 for 3 at one stage, out of the woods against Chhattisgarh.
But with Rahane (118, 237b, 15×4) back among runs after a forgettable outing against Jammu and Kashmir in the Ranji Trophy season-opener and adding 165 runs for the fourth wicket with Siddhesh Lad (80, 146b, 13×4), Mumbai ended the opening day’s play at 251 for 5.
Ajinkya ‘Khadoos’ Rahane
The term khadoos, synonymous with the Mumbai school of cricket, roughly translates to the idea of not giving an inch to the opponent to work with.
On Saturday, Rahane showed a similar mindset as he rescued Mumbai from dire straits with a 165-run partnership for the fourth wicket with Lad. The India international, additionally, ended up scoring his first century of the season.
Having known Rahane for years, Lad was impressed with the way the former took control of things. “Ajinkya went out to bat with a different mindset today. The team (had proposed) to (elevate) Himanshu Singh, but Ajinkya decided to go out there. He was in a different zone, and it seemed that he was aiming for something big,” Lad said.
With three wickets gone for 38, Mumbai needed a long partnership, and Rahane rebuilt with Lad.
“The old Ajinkya Rahane was back today, with that grit and determination. He showcased the true ‘khadoos’ spirit of Mumbai cricket,” Lad added.
Coming on the back of an outright win against J&K, the start was far from perfect for Mumbai at the MCA-BKC ground on Saturday. Both openers, Musheer Khan and Angkrish Raghuvanshi, who came in for Ayush Mhatre, failed to get going after Chhattisgarh opted to bowl.
Making the most of the overcast conditions, fast bowler Ravi Kiran changed ends and troubled the Mumbai top-order. However, Musheer threw away his wicket in the first over against spin. Looking to sweep the seasoned left-arm spinner Aditya Sarwate, he managed to find a top edge, which was pouched by the bowler.
Raghuvanshi, too, failed to grab the opportunity, as he was trapped in front of a fuller delivery from Kiran. The move to elevate Himanshu did not pay off, as he couldn’t last beyond four deliveries.
As the pitch eased out, both Rahane and Lad stood firm and played quite a bit through the square. Lad, high on confidence after scoring a century in the last game, saw through a few deliveries before accelerating to have 14 boundaries marked against his name. Rahane dealt in singles as Mumbai added 97 runs without losing further wickets post lunch.
Spinner Ajay Mandal managed to break the stand as Lad fell 20 runs short of a ton after offering a regulation catch at slip. Expectations were high of Sarfaraz Khan, but he perished in just six balls after playing a rather reckless shot.
Mumbai, however, ended the day in a comfortable position as Rahane and Shams Mulani regrouped before the former retired hurt due to cramps.
Published on Oct 25, 2025
