Mumbai may had to wait till the last match of the league stage to book a place in the quarter-final. Having achieved the first target of the season on the penultimate day of its last Ranji Trophy league match against Tripura, captain Aditya Tare served a reminder to the opponents about Mumbai's immaculate record in the business end of the tournament.
“We’ll have to improve in some areas. We’ll have to pull up our socks. There will be better teams coming in the knock-outs,” Tare said after Mumbai’s 10-wicket win. “I feel that when the knock-outs come, Mumbai is a different and a challenging team. Whatever has happened in the league phase will be behind us and I’m sure we’ll be refreshed. I’m sure that the experienced and senior players will step up at that time.”
Ranji Trophy: Mumbai books knock-out berth with a bonus
Mumbai will now face either Karnataka or Delhi in the quarter-final starting December 7. With Shreyas Iyer having received his maiden ODI call-up, Mumbai will surely miss the batsman's services. The fact that fast bowler Shardul Thakur is unlikely to be available due to the shoulder injury he sustained at Wankhede on Saturday will also compound Mumbai's problem.
In such a scenario, Akash Parkar, who replaced Abhishek Nayar as an all-rounder and took a five-for in Tripura's first innings, will play a crucial role. Tare was glad to see the youngster having stepped up to the challenge.
“I had a word with him at the start of the season. I told him that you’re completely ready for first-class cricket. And he has proved that he is. He is a good all-rounder,” Tare said. “Hopefully, once he kicks in with his batting, because he is a better batsman that what the results are showing, it’s good to have him in the squad. We were always confident about his abilities and we always wanted him around.”
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