A Tale of Two States: Vidarbha's Sarwate Outshines Kerala's Nair in Ranji Trophy Showdown

In a rare turn of events during the Ranji Trophy final, Aditya Sarwate, who had previously played for Vidarbha before moving to Kerala, managed to dismiss Karun Nair, a Kerala batter with roots in Kerala. Despite Nair's valiant effort with a score of 135 for Vidarbha, it was Sarwate's clever tactics that led to his downfall. Nair, trying to accelerate the scoring rate, made a premature move down the track against Sarwate, resulting in his dismissal.

The seasoned left-arm spinner, well aware of Nair’s aggressive approach, pulled his length back and got the ball to skid across the right-hander. Beaten in the flight, Nair was stranded well outside his crease as Kerala wicketkeeper Azharuddeen made no mistake in whipping off the bails.

It was a crucial breakthrough, albeit coming a little too late for Kerala to stage a turnaround.

The uniqueness of the dismissal wasn’t lost on those who knew the backstory. Sarwate, once a vital cog in Vidarbha’s setup, was now turning up against them, while Nair, despite his Keralite upbringing, was representing Vidarbha. Nair's innings eventually played a key role as Vidarbha lifted their third Ranji Trophy title on Sunday, clinching the coveted trophy on the basis of a first-innings lead after the match ended in a draw.

Kerala fell short of just 37 runs in the first innings after Vidarbha posted 379 on the board, riding on Danish Malewar's brilliant century (153). Nair played an important role in the first innings, too, scoring an important 83 and helping in Vidarbha's rebuild afte the side was left reeling at 24/3 on the opening day of the final.

Nair's stellar performance

Nair’s remarkable resurgence in domestic cricket scaled new heights in the final as he notched up his ninth century of the season. The milestone further cemented his status as one of the most prolific batters of the season as he equalled the legendary VVS Laxman’s tally of nine centuries in a single season (1999-2000), standing just one short of Sachin Tendulkar’s all-time record of 10 hundreds in 1994/95.

Nair was particularly impressive in the Vijay Hazare Trophy last month, where he top-scored with 779 runs in nine matches and eight innings at a stunning average of 389.50 and a strike rate of 124.04. He scored five centuries in the tournament and shot up his claim to compete for a spot in India's Champions Trophy squad. BCCI chief selector Ajit Agarkar also admitted that Nair's name was discussed, but with the team's combination already set, he wasn't included in the final 15.

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