Harvik Desai

Mumbai Indians on Thursday announced the signing of Saurashtra wicketkeeper-batter Harvik Desai as a replacement for Vishnu Vinod who was ruled out of the ongoing IPL with a forearm injury.

Tamil Nadu's skipper R Sai Kishore displayed an outstanding performance, claiming five wickets to help dismiss defending champions Saurashtra for 183 on the first day of the Ranji Trophy quarterfinal match in Coimbatore. With this feat, the 27-year-old spinner has become the leading wicket-taker in the tournament this season with a total of 43 wickets.

Saurashtra secured a dominant nine-wicket victory over Punjab in the Vijay Hazare Trophy semifinal. Chasing 292, Saurashtra openers provided a strong start. Vishvaraj Jadeja smashed an unbeaten 165, guiding his team to victory with ease. Punjab's bowling attack struggled to contain Saurashtra's powerful batting performance. The win propels Saurashtra into the final.

A five-wicket haul by pace-bowling stalwart Chirag Jani and a half-century by opener Harvik Desai helped defending champions Saurashtra take the honours on day one of their Ranji Trophy Group A first-round match against Jharkhand here on Friday.

Haryana's promising batsman Himanshu Rana has been appointed captain of the India Under-19 squad for next month's two four-day matches against England while compatriot Prithvi Shaw of Mumbai will lead in the subsequent five one-day matches.

They have been outstanding with their chase during the knockout matches but the Ranji Trophy final would be a different ball game due to the slow and low wicket, says Saurashtra opener Harvik Desai, who believes a target of around 160 would be gettable.

Harvik Desai hit his maiden first-class century to help Saurashtra pull off the highest run chase in Ranji Trophy history, beating Uttar Pradesh by six wickets to enter the semi-finals on Saturday.

Experienced left-arm pacer Jaydev Unadkat will lead the Saurashtra team in the knock-out matches of the Vijay Hazare Trophy national 50-over championship. Saurashtra reached the quarter-final stage of the tournament by topping Elite Group E with 16 points. Saurashtra face domestic giants Mumbai on March 9 in their quarter-final match at the Palam Air Force Ground in New Delhi.

Jay Gohil and Harvik Desai scored centuries as Saurashtra look poised for a substantial first-innings lead over Assam in their Ranji Trophy match in Guwahati on Wednesday.

Seasoned speedster Jaydev Unadkat will lead a 20-member Saurashtra squad at the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy National T20 Championships, which will kick off the 2020-21 domestic season next month. The Saurashtra Cricket Association (SCA) on Friday announced the squad through a media release after its senior selection committee held an online meeting.

Saurashtra, riding on fine centuries from Arpit Vasavada (127 not out) and Harvik Desai (107), posted a mammoth 503 for six as the hosts took control of the Ranji Trophy Group B match against a spineless Delhi bowling attack here on Wednesday.

Chirag Jani came up with an all-round show (52 not out and 3/52) as Saurashtra defeated Tamil Nadu by 44 runs to enter the semifinals of the Vijay Hazare Trophy here on Monday. Put in to bat by the Tamil Nadu skipper B Indrajith, Saurashtra made 293 for 8 in 50 overs.

Asked to bat first, Uttar Pradesh posted 310 for eight in their allotted 50 overs. Rinku Singh's side was without wicketkeeper-batter Dhruv Jurel, who had joined the Indian team following Rishabh Pant’s injury. Despite his absence, Uttar Pradesh recovered well after early setbacks and put up a competitive total at the BCCI Centre of Excellence Ground 2.

In search of big runs, veteran India batter Cheteshwar Pujara on Tuesday made the Saurashtra squad for the Ranji Trophy beginning February 10.

Gujarat advanced to the Ranji Trophy semifinals after defeating Saurashtra by an innings and 98 runs. Key players Priyajit Jadeja and Arzan Nagwaswalla led the bowling attack. Saurashtra was dismissed for 197 runs in their second innings. Cheteshwar Pujara scored 2 runs. Gujarat's performance sends a strong message to their upcoming opponents.

Bhavnagar-based wicket-keeper batsman Harvik Desai, was selected in the Indian team for the Youth Asia Cup to be played at Colombo in Sri Lanka from December 13 to December 24.

Saurashtra gained an 80-run first-innings lead against Jharkhand on Day 3 of their Ranji Trophy match. Harvik Desai scored a century (155), while Arpit Vasavada added 73, helping Saurashtra reach 386. Jharkhand finished the day at 74/1 in their second innings, trailing by six runs. Saurashtra will be aiming for an outright victory on the final day.

In a gripping Ranji Trophy match at Ranchi, Jharkhand, after setting a first innings total of 306, reduced Saurashtra to 201/4 at stumps on Day 2. Harvik Desai's unbeaten 81 anchored Saurashtra's reply, while Manishi shone for Jharkhand with a half-century and two crucial wickets. The match hangs in the balance with Saurashtra trailing by 105 runs.

Spinner Anukul Roy led India U-19 bowlers' splendid show as they drubbed England U-19 by 129 runs in the second one-dayer to level the five-match series 1-1, on Wednesday.

In the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy match at Holkar Stadium, Indore, Saurashtra's Harvik Desai hammered Tamil Nadu spinner Sai Kishore for 24 runs in five balls, including fours boundaries and two sixes. Desai, who added a 99-run partnership with Prerak Mankad, was later dismissed for 55 off 34 balls.

More and more players are emerging from the smaller towns now unlike in the 1980s and 90s and making it big in cricket has become tougher, says former India opener Virender Sehwag.

Rishabh Pant's return to Ranji Trophy for Delhi after nearly eight years ended with a brief stay at the crease, scoring just 1 run. Saurashtra's Dharmendrasinh Jadeja dismissed Pant. The match also featured a memorable moment when a supporter touched Pant's feet. Delhi collapsed at 188 runs, with Saurashtra's Ravindra Jadeja taking five wickets.

Skipper Mayank Agarwal hit a double century to help Karnataka post 407 in their first innings and take the upper hand over Saurashtra in their Ranji Trophy semifinal here on Thursday.

Batting stalwart Cheteshwar Pujara, ignored for the two-Test series against South Africa, cracked an unbeaten century as defending champions Saurashtra made a mockery of the Jharkhand bowling attack to score 406/4 on day 2 of the Ranji Trophy opening round Group A match in Rajkot on Saturday.

All-rounder Saurabh Kumar hit a strokeful fifty before returning to snap two wickets as Rest of India tightened the noose around Saurashtra on day 2 of the Irani Cup match on Sunday.

Vidarbha produced a meek batting effort in the first innings to squander the advantage veteran pacer Umesh Yadav gave them with a four-wicket burst against defending champions Saurashtra in their Elite Group A Ranji match here on Friday.

The highest run-getter in the recently concluded Ranji Trophy season, Karnataka captain Mayank Agarwal will lead Rest of India in the upcoming Irani Cup clash against Madhya Pradesh. The match starts from March 1 in Gwalior. Mumbai's Sarfaraz Khan, who sustained a finger injury has not been named in the 16-member ROI squad.

Jaydev Unadkat, fresh from his fine bowling performance in the second Test against Bangladesh at Mirpur, returned to the Ranji grind and made a smashing impact, grabbing a hat-trick in the first over to leave Group B rivals Delhi in a disarray on Tuesday.

Bowler Jaydev Unadkat will captain the Saurashtra team in the upcoming Vijay Hazare Trophy 2021.