Bahutule takes 5, Mumbai enter final

VADODARA: Mumbai spinners Sairaj Bahutule and Ramesh Powar delivered a tottering Baroda the knock-out punch to floor hosts by and innings and 138 runs on the third day of their Ranji Trophy semi-final match that ended prematurely at the GSFC ground here on Sunday.
Trying to wipe out a huge first innings deficit of 260, the Baroda batsmen never really applied themselves for the second time in succession to hand Mumbai a victory in a platter with about two and half days to spare.
With the exception of young Rakesh Solanki, who once again showed that he was a talent to be taken notice of, the rest of the Baroda batting made it look like a slaughter of the lambs as the went down for 122 in the second innings.
With skipper Connor Williams falling at stumps on Saturday, Baroda expected Satyajit Parab to come up with his fourth century of the season. But the opener flattered to deceive at the start of play on Sunday as on-drove spinner Ramesh Powar for two successive boundaries and then in the next over, missed the line while trying to drive again against the pacy Avishkar Salvi.
Salvi did have to wait long to pick up his third wicket in the match as debutant Dhiren Salvi, looking all at sea, hung out a limp bat in the path of a delivery for Vinayak Samant behind the stumps to take a regulation catch. Dhiren had a pair in the game.
Meanwhile, Mumbai skipper Paras Mhambrey said that Mumbai would not make any changes in their squad for the Ranji Trophy final against the winners of the match between Delhi and Tamil Nadu.