Nikit Dhumal

With the country under a 21-day lockdown to combat the coronavirus spread, the hardship faced by the underprivileged has been troubling Maharashtra cricketers Nikit Dhumal and Naushad Shaikh.

Bat for seven and a half hours, hit just 16 boundary shots in that time and leave more than 80 balls. Boring, yes. But effective too.

Naushad Shaikh, who led Maharashtra briefly in the last Ranji season, is spearheading a campaign to help the needy, including groundsmen, to see them through the three-week lockdown, enforced to contain the COVID-19 pandemic.

Azim Kazi produced a timely half century to guide Maharashtra to a thrilling three-wicket win over Himachal Pradesh in a Group B match of the Vijay Hazare Trophy on Sunday.

Maharashtra will be bolstered by the return of their regular skipper Kedar Jadhav when they face Vidarbha in a Ranji Trophy fixture beginning at Eden Gardens on Sunday.

Kedar Jadhav, 37, is back in the Maharashtra team. Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA) caretaker secretary Riyaz Bagwan announced the state team for the group phase of the Vijay Hazare Trophy one-dayers starting in Ranchi on Saturday.

Ratnagiri Jets, defending champions of the Maharashtra Premier League, have bolstered their squad with seven new players in the recent MPL Player Auction. With 15 retained players, they targeted specific skill sets, securing Abhishek Pawar as backup wicketkeeper, fast bowler Piyush Kamal, and left-arm spinner Satyajeet Bachhav. Coach Ranjit Pande emphasized readiness for the upcoming challenges.

Maharashtra have included their U-19 World Cup winning heroes — left-arm spinner Vicky Ostwal and off-spinning batter Kaushal Tambe — in the 21-player Ranji Trophy team. Paceman Rajvardharn Hangargekar is missing due to personal reasons.“He has conveyed that his mother is unwell.

India discard Sandeep Sharma produced another brilliant spell, returning four wickets from his seven overs to guide Punjab to a six-wicket win over Maharashtra and more importantly to the knockouts of the Vijay Hazare tournament on Wednesday.

Ruturaj Gaikwad (82) and Naushad Shaikh (68) blasted twin fifties as Maharashtra defeated Tamil Nadu by 22 runs in their Group B match of the Vijay Hazare Trophy on Wednesday.

Rishabh Pant showed his natural flair for strokeplay with an attractive 99 in company of a reliable Nitish Rana (110 batting) as Delhi were comfortably placed 260 for 4 against Maharashtra on truncated first day of the fifth round encounter of Ranji Trophy.

Navdeep Saini's lion-hearted effort complemented by Vikas Mishra's disciplined bowling saw Delhi crush Maharashtra by an innings and 61 runs in a group A encounter to ensure quarter-final berth in the Ranji Trophy.

The final list has been pruned from 799 players who registered their names for the auction. There are as many as 122 international players, including six players from Associate nations (five from Afghanistan and one from UAE).