One of the main reasons for Vidarbha's success in the 2017-18 Ranji Trophy is the emergence of fast bowler Rajneesh Gurbani who finished the season as the second-highest wicket-taker with 39 wickets. Gurbani, 24, took a hat-trick in the first innings of the final against Delhi and his innings figures of 6 for 59 kept Delhi to 295. The Vidarbha batsmen then went on to take a big first-innings lead, which paved the way for their first ever Ranji title.
Vidarbha had never reached the Ranji final before. Only one of their homegrown players, Umesh Yadav, plays for India, so in all fairness they can be termed as underdogs. With Yadav away on national duty, it's credit to Vidarbha for having come so far with their available players. Gurbani, also a right-arm fast bowler, is not as fast as Yadav, but his forte is swing. His main weapon is the one that moves away from the right-handed batsman but in the final, he showed that he was very effective with the ball that moved the other way too.
Born in 1993 in Nagpur, Gurbani studied in Mumbai during his early years where he took part in school cricket tournaments. His family returned to Nagpur when his father got transferred. Gurbani furthered his cricket there, taking part in age-group tournaments before getting selected for his State team.
In between, he pursued his higher education, qualifying as a civil engineer. Gurbani told Scroll.in that his parents ensured that education was not neglected in favour of pursuing sport.
Gurbani played his first senior match for Vidarbha in December 2015, in the limited-overs format. He played his first first-class match for them a year later. He came into his own in the 2017-18 Ranji Trophy season, taking 6 for 113 against Himachal Pradesh, 5 for 38 against Kerala in the quarter-final and 5 for 94 and 7 for 68 against Karnataka in the semi-final.
Gurbani was a nervous wreck in Kolkata during that semi-final. Karnataka were reeling at 111 for 7 on the fourth day chasing 198. Vidarbha needed three wickets to enter their first Ranji final. Gurbani couldn't sleep.
“I was nervous last night. I woke up several times in the odd hours of the night. I finally got out of bed at 5 a.m., and for the first time in my life, I was dressed and ready at 6 a.m.. I was desperate to start bowling,” Gurbani told the media after the game.
Karnataka fought but went on to lose by five runs, with Gurbani taking all three remaining wickets. The sleepless night was worth it.
Gurbani ensured his form didn't drop for the final against Delhi in Indore. Early on the second day, Delhi slipped from 290 for 6 to 295 all out, with Gurbani taking three wickets in three balls, split between two overs. He became only the second bowler to take a hat-trick in a Ranji final, after Tamil Nadu seamer B.Kalyanasundaram in 1972-73.
All three of hat-trick victims were out bowled. Gurbani's six-wicket haul gave his team-mates the boost they needed to bat Delhi out of the game. He took another two in the second innings.
Gurbani's achievements would certainly have caught the attention of IPL scouts, with the big auction just a few weeks away.
(Stats: ESPNcricinfo)
