Shardul Thakur became the fifth Mumbai bowler to take a hat-trick in the Ranji Trophy on Thursday against Meghalaya at the BKC Ground. It was also the second hat-trick in the ongoing Ranji Trophy season after Himachal Pradesh’s Rishi Dhawan achieved the feat against Pondicherry.
Shardul Thakur is currently not being considered for the India national team.
Shadul Thakur’s hat-trick came in the third over of the match, as he removed Balchander Anirudh, Sumit Kumar and Jaskirat Singh.
In the next over, Mohit Avasthi dismissed Arpit Bhatewara, reducing Meghalaya to 2/6 – the lowest score after the fall of the sixth wicket in Ranji Trophy history.
Meghalaya’s 2/6 is also the second-lowest in the history of first-class cricket after Marylebone Cricket Club’s 0/6 in 8.2 overs against Surrey at Lord’s in 1872.
Mumbai bowlers with Ranji Trophy hattricks
- Jehangir Behramji Khot (Bombay) vs Baroda – 1943-44
- Umesh Narayan Kulkarni (Bombay) vs Gujarat – 1963-64
- Abdul Moosabhoy Ismail (Bombay) vs Saurashtra – 1973-74
- Royston Harold Dias (Mumbai) vs Bihar – 2023-24
- Shardul Thakur (Mumbai) vs Meghalaya – 2024-25
However, a 38-run stand between Pringsang and Akash Kumar saved Meghalaya the blushes as they were eventually bundled out for 86 runs in 24.3 overs. The lowest total in the history of the Ranji Trophy was Hyderabad’s 21 all out against Rajasthan in 2010.
With Meghalaya dismissed for 86, Mumbai has a high chance of registering a win with a bonus point.
Shardul Thakur finished with figures of 4/43, while Mohit Avasthi picked 3/27. Sylvester Dsouza and Shams Mulani took two and one wicket, respectively.
Meanwhile, Mumbai missed Rohit Sharma, Shreyas Iyer and Yashasvi Jaiswal, who were part of the playing XI in their shocking loss against Jammu and Kashmir.
Jammu and Kashmir and Baroda currently occupy the first two spots in Group D.
