In the end, all it took Mumbai was 15 overs to complete the last rites of Odisha's second innings in the morning of the final day, decimating their hapless opponents for merely 140 in just 42 overs to record a thumping innings and eight runs win and storm into the Ranji Trophy quarterfinals in style, at the Narendra Modi Stadium 'B' ground.
Powered once again by their spinners Shams Mulani (five for 64) - who picked up his fourth five-wicket haul of what has turned out to be a dream Ranji season for him - and Tanush Kotian (three for 31), the 41-time Ranji champs made it to the last eight stage in the tournament for the first time since the 2017-18 season. That they have pipped defending champions Saurashtra, who were placed in their groups, should give Mumbai an additional point to brag about.
"I'm satisfied with our show, but the job is still not finished yet, but I'm glad that we're on the right track," Mumbai coach Amol Muzumdar told TOI from Ahmedabad.
With 29 wickets in three games at a fabulous average of 15. 62, Mulani is the leading wicket-taker in the Ranji Trophy after the first half. To add to it, he has scored a couple of half-centuries too. Both he and Sarfaraz Khan, who scored 165 in this game and 551 runs (average 137. 75) overall to be the leading run-getter in the Elite Group, including a 275 in the opener against Saurashtra, have made a case for them to be picked for a higher level now.
"Both Mulani and Sarfaraz have been phenomenal. That Mulani has picked 29 out of the 59 wickets that we took in the first three games, which speaks volumes about his performance. To add to it, he got a fifty in the last game, and was looking good for a hundred in this match. Sarfaraz too has been exceptional," praised Muzumdar.
The domestic stalwart felt both Sarfaraz and Mulani now must be rewarded by the national selectors accordingly. "Absolutely, they deserve a place (at a higher level). However, they need to stay focused and consistent," felt Muzumdar.
"I'm very happy with mine and the team's performance. All my hard work is paying off. As I said earlier, in some games you don't pick wickets and in some, you tend to pick wickets for fun. It's been those kind of days for me. The wickets here helped me because there was some bounce and turn in them, which is all that any spinner wants. I would like to thank my coaches Amol sir and Vishal Mahadik sir (Mumbai bowling coach). The credit for my show also goes to my coaches at the Bengal Cricket Club (ACC) Pravin (Amre) sir and his assistant coaches Aniket Berde, Tejas Dayate and Sagar Manjrekar. The work that I put in is paying off and I'm pleased about that," Mulani told this paper.
The convincing fashion in which Mumbai reached the knockouts - they came within a wicket of beating Saurashtra, fought back after conceding a 167-run to down Goa, and then thrashed Odisha - gives a big sigh of relief to Muzumdar, who in his maiden season as the Mumbai coach saw his team crash out at the league stage in both the white ball tournaments earlier this season.
