Mumbai host struggling Railways at Brabourne as Ranji round four begins

Mumbai go into the last round before the Ranji Trophy’s winter break in their best form of the season. They take on Railways at Brabourne Stadium from 9:30 am on Monday, in a four-day Group D game that runs until Thursday.

The hosts arrive on the back of a crushing win. Against Haryana last week, Musheer Khan made 109 and then took 6 for 85, Tanush Kotian took 8 for 81, and Mumbai knocked off a target of 97 in just 10.4 overs to win by 10 wickets and collect a bonus point.

Railways need a result

Railways have had a harder time. In round three they lost to Tamil Nadu by five wickets despite 5 for 41 from Raj Choudhary. Sai Kishore’s 4 for 39 in the second innings left Tamil Nadu needing only 128, and Andre Siddarth saw them home with an unbeaten 56.

Haryana, Tamil Nadu, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Chandigarh and Himachal Pradesh make up the rest of a crowded Group D, and a win would strengthen Mumbai’s hand before the break.

What comes next

This is Mumbai’s fourth match of the season and their last before the Ranji Trophy pauses for the white-ball competitions. Their remaining group games, against Uttarakhand, Tamil Nadu and Rajasthan, are due in late January and early February.

Round four also gets under way at grounds across the country on Monday, a week after Baroda’s Priyanshu Moliya set a state record with an unbeaten 321 against Jammu and Kashmir.