NEW DELHI: India skipper Rohit Sharma hailed Mumbai’s Dhawal Kulkarni and labelled him “Mumbai ka Yoddha” after his first-class career ended on a fairytale note in the Ranji Trophy final at the Wankhede Stadium on Thursday.
Kulkarni claimed the final wicket which saw Mumbai claim their 42nd Ranji Trophy title with a 169-run win over Vidarbha.
Mumbai’s eight-year wait ended with Kulkarni producing an inward angling delivery to breach Umesh Yadav’s defence and shatter the leg stump.
After Kulkarni bid farewell to his first-class cricket career with tears of joy, Rohit took to Instagram and congratulated the 35-year-old for his fantastic career.
“Mumbai ka Yoddha, well done on a fantastic career,” Rohit wrote on Instagram.
Overall, Kulkarni had a memorable final as he claimed three wickets in the first innings while giving away just 15 runs in his 11-over spell.
In the second innings, the 35-year-old leaked runs but eventually bagged a wicket with Umesh losing his wicket to the experienced pacer.
After the game, Kulkarni opened up about the gesture of the Mumbai skipper Ajinkya Rahane to hand him the ball and let him take the final wicket instead of using Tushar Deshpande to get the job done.
“It’s a cricketer’s dream to start and finish on a high. This is my 6th final, 5th time we’ve won and this will be dear for me. It was an excellent gesture, I didn’t expect (that Rahane would give him the ball to finish the game), but hats off for Tushar who gave the ball to me despite taking two wickets in an over. I’ve got experience as I’ve played with big stars, they’ve shared plenty of experience with me and I have passed the same to the younger lot,” Kulkarni said after the game.
On Day 5, Mumbai were left frustrated after Vidarbha skipper Akshay Wadkar and Harsh Dubey fought valiantly to ensure that they didn’t lose a single wicket in the first session while chasing 537.
However, after Wadkar’s (102) dismissal, Vidarbha lost their remaining wickets in a span of five overs following a clinical bowling spell from Mumbai.
Mumbai ended their eight-year wait for Ranji Trophy with a 169-run win. (ANI)