Vidarbha players rejoice after securing Ranji Trophy 2024-25 final vs Kerala on first innings lead [Watch]

Vidarbha clinched the Ranji Trophy 2024-25, their third title in the competition. Their final against Kerala ended in a draw on Sunday, March 2, at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium in Nagpur.

As Vidarbha had gained the first innings lead, they were crowned champions despite the Ranji Trophy 2024-25 final ending in a draw. Batting first, they put up 379 runs in the first innings, led by vital knocks from Danish Malewar (153) and Karun Nair (86).

In response, Kerala could only manage to get to 342, conceding a first innings lead of 37 runs. Skipper Sachin Baby led from the front with a crucial 98, along with a fifty from Aditya Sarwate (79). For Vidarbha, Darshan Nalkande, Harsh Dubey, and Parth Rekhade picked up three wickets each.

In the second innings, Vidarbha scored 375/9 before the game ended in a draw. Karun Nair slammed 135 runs while Danish Malewar (73) and Darshan Nalkande (51 not out) struck half-centuries.

This is their third Ranji Trophy title in seven years. They won this season unbeaten, having won six games in the group stage before beating Tamil Nadu by 198 runs in the quarter-final, Mumbai by 80 runs in the semi-final, and securing a win based on first innings lead in the final against Kerala.

The players were seen hugging each other and celebrating the title. There were smiles all around on the faces of the coach, players, and other staff.

Here's a video of the same:

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When did Vidarbha last win the Ranji Trophy?

This is Vidarbha's third Ranji Trophy title. They had previously won the premier Indian domestic competition in consecutive seasons in 2017-18 and 2018-19.

In 2017-18, they beat Delhi in the final. Batting first, Delhi scored 295 runs. In response, Vidarbha put up a huge total of 547. They then bowled Delhi out for just 280 and chased down a small target of 29 runs to win by nine wickets.

In the final of the 2018-19 Ranji Trophy edition, they beat Saurashtra by 78 runs. Vidarbha scored 312 runs batting first and bowled Saurashtra out for 307 runs next. In the second innings, they scored 200 runs, setting their opponents a target of 206 runs.

Saurashtra were bowled out for just 127 as Vidarbha went on to win their second title at the time.