Why you shouldn't be surprised by Mumbai's 39th Ranji Trophy title

Yes Mumbai have claimed yet another Ranji trophy title u00e2u0080u0094 their 39th Heres why this amazing number of titles shouldnt surprise youMumbai won their 39th Ranji Trophy title yesterday The second best teams tally doesnt even go into double figuresu00a0Delhi won seven titlesPacemen Avishkar Salvi right and Abhishek Nayar go crazy during Mumbais Ranji celebrations in Mysore yesterday PICSURESH KKOut of the 43 Ranji finals Mumbai have figured in they have lost only four times Thirty two of those triumphs were achieved through outright winsOnly three present state associations have defeated Mumbai in Ranji Trophy finals u00e2u0080u0094 Delhi Karnataka and Haryana Rajasthan reached seven Ranji Trophy finals against Mumbai but couldnt even win oneu00a0u00a0 Top order batsman Ajinkya Rahane could well be the next Mumbai player in the India team Rahane was clearly the star of the season with 809 runs in nine games Wasim Jaffer who only started leading Mumbai last season has won the Ranji Trophy in both his captaincy yearsDilip Sardesai who was highly instrumental in Indias first Test triumph in the West Indies in 1971 never played in a Mumbai team that lost a Ranji gameMumbai enjoyed a 15season unbeaten Ranji Trophy reign 195859 to 197273 When members of those invincible outfits used to be asked how come no one could beat them they would invariably say we didnt know how to loseAustralia and England dominated world cricket when Mumbai were ruling over Indian cricket So how did their champion domestic outfits fare in terms of successive titles Englands Surrey won seven county championship titles 1952 to 1958 while Australias New South Wales won nine titles from 195354 to 196162 But Mumbai won 15 on the trotA lot of Mumbais success can be attributed to the aggressive attitude of their players When Eknath Solkar and Dilip Sardesai were tackling Garfield Sobers West Indies team in 197071 Sardesai the senior partner advised him to play freely just as he would play for his club side u00e2u0080u0094 the PJ Hindu Gymkhana And Solkar didnt let his side downWicketkeeper Chandu Patankar played one Test for India but that did not guarantee him a place in the starstudded Mumbai team He could play only 10 Ranji games for MumbaiVithal Patil who is the highest wickettaker in the popular Kanga League cricket with 759 wickets could play just two Ranji Trophy games for Mumbai Such was Mumbais strengthSanjay Jaywants Ranji Trophy experience for Mumbai is unique In his only innings against Saurashtra in 1975 he got a bad decision and could never break into a Ranji Trophy team againLeftarm spinner Padmakar Shivalkar starred in many a Mumbai Ranji Trophy triumph in the 1960s and 1970s Despite claiming 361 Ranji Trophy wickets he didnt get picked to play a Test for India Shivalkar is the current chairman of selectorsDilip Vengsarkar admitted that he struggled to sleep for several months after Mumbai lost the Ranji Trophy final to Haryana in 1991 Kapil Devs men beat Sanjay Manjrekars team by two wickets u00e2u0080u0093 the closest finish to a Ranji Trophy final Speaks volumes of Vengsarkars hatred to lose No team can achieve invincibility without being mentally strong Eknath Solkar returned to the Brabourne Stadium after his fathers funeral to continue playing a Ranji Trophy game for Mumbai Present Mumbai captain Wasim Jaffer too played along despite receiving the news of his mothers deathMaharashtra and Mumbai were fierce rivals in the national championships The Pune outfits best chance of beating Mumbai in a Ranji final came in the 197071 season Maharashtra needed 253 runs to realise their Ranji Trophy dream and according to grapevine had planned to have a grand party at The Taj after victory However Mumbai regrouped and bowled them out for 205 All party plans were cancelledThat triumph was achieved under a young captain u00e2u0080u0094 Sudhir Naik u00e2u0080u0094 who led a second string team with stars like Sunil Gavaskar Dilip Sardesai Ajit Wadekar Eknath Solkar and Ashok Mankad in the West IndiesIn these days when bowlers concede extras regularly it is believed that Mumbais star fast bowler Ramakant Desai never bowled a noball even in the netsAjit Wadekar a successful captain for Mumbai did not believe in protecting a toporder batsman by sending a nightwatchman if Mumbai lost a wicket towards the end of the dayRavi Shastris knee injury hampered his international career in the 1990s The injury troubled him during the 199394 Ranji season too but he endured it with true grit to lead Mumbai to a Ranji triumph after eight barren seasonsSachin Tendulkars most memorable innings for Mumbai was the double hundred against Australia in 1998 where Shane Warne was whacked around But his most significant Ranji innings would have to be the unbeaten 233 which he scored to help Mumbai win the 19992000 semifinal against Tamil Nadu There is a story about a Mumbai batsman who was considered a superb fielder too During a Ranji Trophy game he shockingly spilled several catches which hurt his team badly He couldnt stand it anymore u00e2u0080u0093 literally Overcome by guilt he ran to the dressing room to get rid of his frustration