Vidarbha pacer Harsh Dubey broke the Ranji Trophy record for most wickets in a single edition of the tournament. In the final against Kerala at the Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium in Nagpur, the 22-year-old clinched a three-wicket haul to complete 69 wickets in the season. He dismissed Aditya Sarwate, Salman Nizar and M.D. Nidheesh in the final to reach the milestone.
Ashutosh Aman of Bihar previously held the record for most wickets in a single edition of the Ranji Trophy. In the 2018-19 season, Aman picked up 68 wickets in the season. In the 2019-20 season, Saurashtra captain Jaydev Unadkat had 67 scalps to his name.
| Player | Wickets | Team | Season |
| Harsh Dubey | 69 | Vidarbha | 2024-25 |
| Ashutosh Aman | 68 | Bihar | 2018-19 |
| Jaydev Unadkat | 67 | Saurashtra | 2019-20 |
| Bishan Singh Bedi | 64 | Punjab | 1974-15 |
| Dodda Ganesh | 62 | Karnataka | 1998-99 |
Meanwhile, Dubey’s three-wicket haul has almost sealed Vidarbha as the Ranji champions. The Akshay Wadekar-led side posted 379 runs in the first innings and in reply, Kerala scored 342. Danish Malewar played a stunning knock of 153 runs in the first innings, which played a vital role in Vidarbha managing a lead in the first innings. Karun Nair also supported him well, scoring 86 runs.
In the second innings, Kerala had a rough start as they were reduced to 14/2 at one stage. Later, Aditya Sarwate and Ahammed Imran tried to rescue Kerala’s innings as they put up a 93-run partnership. Sarwate particularly made 79 runs while Imran made 37. Kerala needed a strong finish to take a lead in the first innings and that’s when captain Sachin Baby stepped up. He played a brilliant knock of 98 runs but it wasn’t enough in the end.
Vidarbha secured a 37-run lead in the first innings and until something dramatic happens in the remaining two days, the hosts can be confident of their chances. Kerala, on the other hand, need to pick some early wickets on Day 4 to change the complexion of the game and push for the win.
