Vijay Hazare Trophy 2022-23: Jharkhand Review

Jharkhand placed in Group B with all matches played in Kolkata. The Virat Singh lead squad finished 3rd in the Group. However, they qualified as best 3rd place team to join the 5 Group runners-up in the Pre-Quarter Finals, where they once again met Karnataka and met a similar fate. Overall, it was a decent campaign. Some of the batters were amongst the runs. And in Kumar Kushagra, they have found another wicket-keeper batter who can keep a calm head in a crisis both in chases as well as while rebuilding an innings. Won’t be surprised if some of the franchisees looking for a back-up wicket-keeper show a keen interest in him during the upcoming IPL Auction!

Here is a game by game summary of the tournament.

Game 1: Jharkhand 309/3 (50) beat Sikkim 116/10 (40.1/50) by 193 runs

Highlights: Rahul Shukla 5/19, Utkarsh Singh 52 & 1/4, Virat Singh 75, Saurabh Tiwary 63*, Kumar Deobrat 51*

Game 2: Assam 163/10 (39.4) lost to Jharkhand 166/2 (35) by 8 wickets

Highlights: Vivekanand Tiwari 4/42, Utkarsh Singh 83* & 1/12, Virat Singh 50

Game 3: Jharkhand 107/10 (40.4) lost to Karnataka 108/4 (26.3) by 6 wickets

Highlights: Kumar Kushagra 56

Game 4: Rajasthan 270/10 (49) lost Jharkhand 271/5 (49) by 5 wickets

Highlights: Rahul Shukla 5/53, Utkarsh Singh 91 & 1/31, Saurabh Tiwary 76

Game 5: Jharkhand 321/2 (50) beat Meghalaya 129/10 (40.3) by 192 runs

Highlights: Utkarsh Singh 128*, Virat Singh 112, Vikash Singh 3/17, Sushant Mishra 3/33

Game 6: Delhi 259/5 (50) lost to Jharkhand 260/5 (48.5) by 5 wickets

Highlights: Virat Singh 116*

Game 7: Vidarbha 297/3 (50) beat Jharkhand 288/6 (50) by 9 runs

Highlights: Saurabh Tiwary 138*, Kumar Kushagra 55

Pre-Quarter-Final: Jharkhand 187/10 (47.1) lost to Karnataka 188/5 (40.5) by 5 wickets

List A Debut: Arnav Sinha

Highlights: Kumar Kushagra 74, Anukul Roy 57

Tournament Stats

Highest Scorers

1. Virat Singh: 390 @ 65.00, 2x100, 2x50
2. Utkarsh Singh: 370 @ 61.67, 1x100, 3x50
3. Saurabh Tiwary: 367 @ 91.75, 1x100, 2x50

Highest Wicket-takers

1. Rahul Shukla: 16 @ 16.25, 2x5
2. Shahbaz Nadeem: 8 @ 37.50
3. Sushant Mishra: 7 @ 19.86

Top Score: Saurabh Tiwary: 138* vs Vidarbha

Best Bowling: Rahul Shukla: 5/19 vs Sikkim

Players Used: 17 

List A Debuts: 1

Vijay Hazare Trophy 2021-22: Jharkhand Review

Domestic Cricket continues to be in stop-start mode since the covid pandemic first hit. And just when things seemed to be heading back to normal, India is now in grips of the third wave leading to postponement of Ranji Trophy again. In the interim, Vijay Hazare Trophy was successfully held (a tremendous achievement given the logistical challenges) 

Jharkhand had another middling tournament. They won 2 & lost 3 matches to finish 3rd in the group missing out a berth in the knock-outs. Virat Singh lead the side in the first two games in Saurabh Tiwary’s s absence, who led the side in the remaining three. 

Here is the game-by-game summary of the tournament. 

Game 1: Jharkhand 263/8 (50) lost to Delhi 264/4 (47) by 6 wickets 

Highlights: Virat Singh 79, Kaushal Singh 69, Anukul Roy 47 & 1/49 

Debut: Sushant Mishra 

Game 2: Uttar Pradesh 239/7 (50) lost to Jharkhand 242/2 (46.1) by 8 wickets 

Highlights: Rahul Shukla 3/51, Varun Aaron 2/36, Nazim Siddiqui 116, Utkarsh Singh 57* 

Game 3: Haryana 281/3 (50) beat Jharkhand 253/10 (49.3) by 28 runs 

Highlights: Nazim Siddiqui 62, Utkarsh Singh 78 

Game 4: Jharkhand 211/10 (49.1) lost to Saurashtra 212/3 (34.4) by 7 wickets 

Highlights: Ishank Jaggi 56, Utkarsh Singh 55, Varun Aaron 2/34 

Game 5: Jharkhand 276/10 (50) beat Hyderabad 240/10 (48.4) by 36 runs 

Highlights: Virat Singh 65, Varun Aaron 3/50, Shahbaz Nadeem 3/32 

Season Stats 

Highest Scorers 

1. Nazim Siddiqui 271 @ 54.20, 1x100, 1x50 
2. Virat Singh 196 @ 49.00, 2x50 
3. Utkarsh Singh 191 @ 47.75, 3x50 

Highest Wicket-takers 

1. Varun Aaron 8 @ 20.13 
2. Shahbaz Nadeem 6 @ 37.17 
3. Rahul Shukla 4 @ 48.75 

Best Batting: Nazim Siddiqui 116 vs Uttar Pradesh 

Best Bowling: Shahbaz Nadeem 3/32 vs Hyderabad 

Players Used: 15 

List A Debut: 1 

Overall, not a particularly great run for Jharkhand. Ishan Kishan was once again missed. And now we enter a phase of uncertainty for the next fixture. Although there is an IPL auction coming up as well.

Syed Mustaq Ali Trophy 2021-22: Jharkhand Review

A middling start for the season for Jharkhand. 3 losses on the trot followed by 2 wins to finish 3rd in the Group and getting knocked out early. Some of the games could have gone easily gone the Saurabh Tiwary lead side’s way. Here is the game-by-game summary of the tournament. 

Game 1: Jharkhand 146/5 (20) lost to Rajasthan 147/4 (17.3) by 6 wickets 

Highlights: Kumar Deobrat 51 (34) 

T20 Debut: Kumar Kushagra 

Game 2: Himachal Pradesh 144/8 (20) beat Jharkhand 137/9 (20) by 7 runs 

Highlights: Monu Kumar 3/31, Anukul Roy 2/18 & 39(19) 

Game 3: Andhra 165/4 (20) beat Jharkhand 157/9 (20) by 8 runs 

Highlights: Ishank Jaggi 62 (39) 

T20 Debut: Shubham Singh 

Game 4: Jharkhand 181/5 (20) beat Haryana 165/10 (19.3) by 16 runs 

Highlights: Jaggi 51 (42), Saurabh Tiwary 58* (35), Bal Krishna 3/34, Anukul Roy 2/27, Shahbaz Nadeem 1/17 

Game 5: Jammu & Kashmir 156/6 (20) lost to Jharkhand 157/5 (19.2) by 5 wickets 

Highlights: Utkarsh Singh 2/22 

Season Stats 

Highest Scorers 

1. Saurabh Tiwary 154 @ 51.33, 1x50 
2. Ishank Jaggi 143 @ 47.67, 2x50 
3. Utkarsh Singh 89 @ 22.50 

Highest Wicket-takers 

1. Anukul Roy 6 @ 20.33 
2. Monu Kumar 4 @ 13.00 
3. Shubham Singh 4 @ 24.75 

Best Batting: Ishank Jaggi 62 vs Andhra 

Best Bowling: Bal Krishna 3/34 vs Haryana 

Players Used: 17 

T20 Debut: 2 

Overall, not a particularly great run for Jharkhand. Ishan Kishan was certainly missed.

Ranji Trophy 2019-20: Jharkhand Review

Jharkhand finished 6th in the Group in a season which started with a bang and then got derailed. There was the stunning come from behind opening game against Tripura where Jharkhand became the first team in the history of Ranji Trophy to win the game after following on. However, as the season progressed, the Saurabh Tiwary lead side saw more downs than ups and eventually ended 6th in the group.

Highs & Lows

• The opening encounter against Tripura, which got its own separate post
• Kumar Suraj’s good start to his first-class career. 
• Missing senior players like Nadeem, Ishan & Aaron on account of India A duties and injuries.

And I ran into the team at Hyderabad airport!

Season Summary Game by Game

Game 1: Tripura (289 & 211) lost to Jharkhand (136 & 418/8d (f/o)) by 54 runs 

Points: Jharkhand 6, Tripura 0

• First-Class Debut: Arnav Sinha, Vivekanand Tiwari
• First-Class Century #18 for Saurabh Tiwary 
• First-Class Century #19 for Ishank Jaggi 
• 1000 First-Class runs for Virat Singh & Nazim Siddiqui 
• Ashish Kumar – 2nd 5-wicket haul, Career - Best Innings & match figures

Game 2: Assam (162 & 186) lost to Jharkhand (415/9d) by innings & 67 runs 

Points: Jharkhand 7, Assam 0 

• First-Class Debut: Pankaj Kumar, the wicket-keeper 
• First-Class Century #3 for Nazim Siddiqui & Career-best 173

Game 3: Haryana (371) drew with Jharkhand (408/5) 

Points: Jharkhand 3, Haryana 1 

• First-Class Century #2 for Kumar Deobrat & Career-best 161 
• First-Class Century #19 for Saurabh Tiwary

Game 4: Jharkhand (259 & 155) lost to Jammu & Kashmir (441) by an innings & 27 runs 

Points: Jharkhand 0, Jammu & Kashmir 7 

Game 5: Maharashtra (434 & 48/2) beat Jharkhand (170 & 311 (f/o)) by 8 wickets 

Points: Jharkhand 0, Maharashtra 6 

• First-Class Debut – Kumar Suraj 
• 5-Wicket Haul #1 – Utkarsh Singh

Game 6: Uttarakhand (227 & 273) lost to Jharkhand (298 & 203/4) by 6 wickets 

Points: Jharkhand 6, Uttarakhand 0 

• 2000 First-Class Runs for Kumar Deobrat 
• 50 Catches for Sumit Kumar 
• 100 First-Class Wickets, 3rd 5-wicket haul & best match-figures for Ashish Kumar 
• 5-wicket haul #6 for Ajay Yadav 

Game 7: Services (279 & 259/8d) beat Jharkhand (153 & 267) by 118 runs 

Points: Jharkhand 0, Services 6 

• First-Class Debut for Sahil Raj 
• First-Class Century #1 for Kumar Suraj 
• 100 First-Class wickets for Rahul Shukla, 5th 5-wicket haul & best innings performance 

Game 8: Chhattisgarh (559) drew with Jharkhand (242 & 51/0) 

Points: Chhattisgarh 3, Jharkhand 1 

• First-Class Century #3 for Virat Singh & highest score 

Game 9: Odisha (436 & 187/1) drew with Jharkhand (356) 

Points: Odisha 3, Jharkhand 1 

• 100th First-Class Match for Saurabh Tiwary 
• First-Class Century #2 for Kumar Suraj 
• 5-wicket Haul #4 for Ashish Kumar 

Season Stats 

Most Runs:

1. Saurabh Tiwary – 641 @58.27, 2x100s & 3x50s
2. Kumar Deobrat – 515 @39.62, 1x100s & 2x50s
3. Kumar Suraj – 457 @57.13, 2x100 & 2x50s

Highest Score – Nazim Siddiqui – 173 vs Assam

Most Wickets

1. Ashish Kumar – 37 @221.78, 3x5s 
2. Rahul Shukla – 19 @34.42, 1x5s
3. Utkarsh Singh – 16 @40.44, 1x5s

Best Bowling – Rahul Shukla – 7/106 vs Services

Player Count: 21

First-Class Debuts: 5

Till next season! However there is the small matter of IPL in between, where the likes of Tiwary, Virat Singh, Ishan, Nadeem, Aaron and Monu would look to put in performances worth of the highlights reel. And maybe consolidate an A Spot.

Syed Mustaq Ali Trophy 2019-20: Jharkhand Review

The Jharkhand campaign was off to a good start but fizzled out later, qualifying for the Super League but ending winless there. 

The Syed Mustaq Ali Trophy served as an audition for the IPL Auctions coming up in December. Overall, only Virat Singh and Utkarsh Singh came up with performances of note for an entry into the Auctions. 

Ishan Kishan lead the side in the campaign before handing over to Shahbaz Nadeem and later to Saurabh Tiwary. Here is the match-wise summary. 

Game 1: Jharkhand vs Odisha. Match Abandoned due to Rains 

Game 2: Saurashtra 169/3 (20) lost to Jharkhand 170/4 (19/4) by 6 wickets 

Highlights: Virat Singh 67* (38), Saurabh Tiwary 39 (27) 

Game 3: Jharkhand 107/10 (19.4) beat Jammu & Kashmir 100/10 (19.5) by 7 runs 

Highlights: Virat Singh 44 (43), Rahul Shukla 4/10 (4), Shahbaz Nadeem 2/10 (3), Varun Aaron 2/21 (4). 

Game 4: Sikkim 63/10 (16) lost to Jharkhand 65/2 (9.5) by 8 wickets 

Highlights: Anukul Roy 3/11 (4), Utkarsh Singh 3/14 (4), Vivek Tiwari 2/7 (3), Virat Singh 35* (26) 

T20 Debut: Vivek Tiwari 

Game 5: Nagaland 145/6 (20) lost to Jharkhand 149/3 (17.5) by 7 wickets 

Highlights: Anand Singh 81* (59) & 2/29 (4), Ishan Kishan 48 (31), Varun Aaron 3/17 (4) 

Game 6: Delhi 176/5 (20) beat Jharkhand 167/6 (20) by 9 runs 

Highlights: Utkarsh Singh 49* (25) & 2/24 (3), Virat Singh 32 (21), Kumar Deobrat 33 (24) 

Game 7: Gujarat 128/7 (20) lost to Jharkhand 131.1 (18) by 9 wickets 

Highlights: Virat Singh 52* (32), Utkarsh Singh 42* (45) 

Jharkhand reach the Super League after finishing second behind Delhi on head-to-head record. 

Super League 

Game 1: Punjab 199/4 (20) beat Jharkhand 90/10 (14.2) by 109 runs 

Shahbaz Nadeem lead the side. 

Game 2: Karnataka 189/6 (20) beat Jharkhand 176/5 (20) by 13 runs 

Highlights: Sonu Singh 3/28 (4), Virat Singh 76* (44), Anand Singh 41 (39) 

Saurabh Tiwary lead the side 

Game 3: Jharkhand 170/5 (20) lost to Mumbai 171/5 (19.1) by 5 wickets 

Highlights: Kumar Deobrat 58 (30) 

Saurabh Tiwary lead the side 

Game 4: Jharkhand 85/10 (18.1) lost to Tamil Nadu 86/2 (13.5) by 8 wickets. 

Saurabh Tiwary lead the side. 

Season Stats 

Highest Scorers 

1. Virat Singh: 343 @51.57, 3x50 
2. Saurabh Tiwary: 169 @24.14 
3. Utkarsh Singh: 150 @30.00 

Highest Wicket-Takers 

1. Varun Aaron: 10 @23.40 
2. Utkarsh Singh: 9 @20.11 
3. Rahul Shukla: 7 @27.86

Best Batting: Virat Singh – 76 vs Karnataka 

Best Bowling: Rahul Shukla – 4/10 vs Jammu & Kashmir 

Players Used: 16 

T20 Debuts: 1 

Coming Up Next: Ranji Trophy.

Vijay Hazare Trophy 19-20: Jharkhand Review

After a good run to the semi-finals last year, Jharkhand had a middling season this time around. Having been promoted to Group A, they were in contention till the very last game but ran into Yashasvi Jaiswal, who hammered a double century. Jharkhand gave a valiant chase but fell short. Overall, it was a decent run for the Ishan Kishan led side. 

There were good all-round performances from Anukul Roy and Utkarsh Singh, while Virat Singh led the way with bat alongwith the ever-dependable Saurabh Tiwary However, most of the star players Shahbaz Nadeem, Ishan Kishan, and Varun Aaron had average tournaments which reflected in the team’s performance also. Here is the season summary. 

Game 1: Karnataka 285/9 (50) beat Jharkhand 162/10 (37.5) by 123 runs 

Key Performers: Rahul Shukla 4/43 (10), Anand Singh 4/52 (10) 

List A debut: Shubham Singh 

Game 2: Goa 266/8 (50) beat Jharkhand 224/10 (48.1) by 42 runs 

Key Performers: Rahul Shukla 6/33 (10) 

Game 3: Jharkhand 258/5 (36) beat Kerala 253/10 (36) by 5 runs. Match reduced to 36 overs each. 

Key Performers: Kumar Deobrat 54, Anukul Roy 31 & 4/31 (7), Utkarsh Singh 4/38 (8) 

List A Debut: Vivekanand Tiwari 

Game 4: Hyderabad 192/7 (34) lost to Jharkhand 193/4 (33.4)) by 6 wickets. Match reduced to 34 overs each. 

Key Performers: Kumar Deobrat 56, Saurabh Tiwary 61* 

Game 5: Jharkhand 259/10 (48.4) beat Saurashtra 129/10 (37.4) by 130 runs 

Key Performers: Utkarsh Singh 100 & 4/34 (10), Virat Singh 52*, Vivekanand Tiwari 3/17 (5) 

Game 6: Jharkhand 119/10 (29) lost to Chhattisgarh 123/3 (28.3) by 7 wickets. Match reduced to 31 overs each. 

Game 7: Andhra 265/6 (50) lost to Jharkhand 266/7 (49.4) by 3 wickets 

Key Performers: Virat Singh 74*, Saurabh Tiwary 56 

Game 8: Mumbai 358/3 (50) beat Jharkhand 319/10 (46.4) by 39 runs 

Key Performers: Virat Singh 100, Saurabh Tiwary 77. 

Mumbai’s Yashasvi Jaiswal became the youngest player to score a double century in List A cricket, and this was his 3rd century in just his 5th game! Certainly one to watch out for! 

Season Stats: 

Standing: 5th in Group A with 16 points from 8 games & 8th across Groups A & B. 

Highest Scorers 

1. Virat Singh – 335 @83.75, 1 Century & 2 50s 
2. Saurabh Tiwary – 328 @ 54.67, 3 50s 
3. Ishan Kishan – 204 @25.50 

Most Wickets 

1. Rahul Shukla – 15 @22.53, 1 6-for 
2. Vivekanand Tiwari – 8 @21.63 
3. Anukul Roy – 8 @30.63 

Highest Score: Virat Singh – 100 vs Mumbai, Utkarsh Singh 100 vs Saurashtra 

Best Bowling: Rahul Shukla – 6/33 vs Goa 

Players Used: 15 

List A Debutantes: 2 

Coming Up Next: Syed Mustaq Ali Trophy in December.

Syed Mustaq Ali Trophy 2019: Jharkhand Review

Overall, it was a decent campaign for Jharkhand topping the Group stages and then starting well in the Super League but faltering in the end. They certainly missed the services of their star players Ishan Kishan and Shahbaz Nadeem in the later stages of the tournament. 

Group Stage 

Game 1: Jharkhand 158/4 (20) beat Delhi 155/5 (20) by 3 runs 

Key Performers: Virat Singh 70*(49), Shahbaz Nadeem 2/26, Rahul Shukla 2/35 

T20 Debut: Anukul Roy 

Game 2: Jammu & Kashmir 168/9 (20) lost to Jharkhand 170/1 (16.4) by 9 wickets 

Key Performers: Rahul Shukla 5/36, Monu Kumar 2/31, Ishan Kishan 100* (55) 

Game 3: Jharkhand 219/1 (20) beat Manipur 98/9 (20) by 121 runs 

Key Performers: Ishan Kishan 113* (62), Virat Singh 73*(46), Utkarsh Singh 3/7, Rahul Shukla 3/14, Anukul Roy 2/17 

T20 Debut: Utkarsh Singh 

Game 4: Jharkhand 219/1 (20) beat Manipur 98/9 (20) by 121 runs 

Key Performers: Ishan Kishan 113* (62), Virat Singh 73*(46), Utkarsh Singh 3/7, Rahul Shukla 3/14, Anukul Roy 2/17 

T20 Debut: Utkarsh Singh

Game 4: Jharkhand 197/3 (20) beat Nagaland 143/3 (20) by 55 runs 

Key Performers: Ishan Kishan 52 (39), Kumar Deobrat 69* (32), Anukul Roy 47* (23) 

Game 5: Andhra 179/10 (19.5) beat Jharkhand 176/10 (19.5) by 3 runs 

Key Performers: Shahbaz Nadeem 3/26, Varun Aaron 3/49, Rahul Shukla 2/33, Saurabh Tiwary 54 (32) 

Game 6: Kerala 176/6 (20) lost to Jharkhand 180/5 (19.1) by 5 wickets 

Key Performers: Rahul Shukla 2/40, Vikash Singh 2/34, Saurabh Tiwary 50* (24), Anand Singh 72 (47) 

Jharkhand qualified for Super League topping Group A. 

Super League 

Game 1: Jharkhand 148/7 (18) beat Gujarat 147/8 (18) by 1 run 

Key Performers: Anand Singh 45 (36) & 2/26, Ishan Kishan 39 (19), Utkarsh Singh 2/22, Vikash Singh 2/25, Anukul Roy 2/25 

T20 Debut: Supriyo Chakroborty 

Game 2: Railways 135/8 (20) lost to Jharkhand 136/5 (19) by 5 wickets 

Key Performers: Rahul Shukla 2/19, Anand Singh 53 (39), Virat Singh 50* (40) 

Game 3: Jharkhand 126/9 (20) lost to Bengal 127/2 (13) by 8 wickets 

Key Performers: Varun Aaron 2/24 

Game 4: Maharashtra 153/4 (20) beat Jharkhand 139/8 (20) by 14 runs 

Key Performers: Varun Aaron 2/22 

Jharkhand finished 3rd in the Super League rounds and were eliminated. 

Season Stats 

Top Scorer: 

1. Virat Singh 339 @56.5 
2. Ishan Kishan 333 @55.5 
3. Anand Singh 316 @31.6 

Highest Score – Ishan Kishan 113* vs Manipur 

Most Wickets 

1. Rahul Shukla 16 @17.63 
2. Varun Aaron 9 @ 15.89 
3. Utkarsh Singh 7 @ 13 

Best Figures – Rahul Shukla 5/36 vs Jammu & Kashmir 

Player Count: 17 

Debutantes: 3 

Captain Count: 2 (Ishan Kishan, Anand Singh) 

Thus, we come to an end of Jharkhand’s 2018-19 season. The team has been performing consistently well, but just coming short. Hopefully, the elusive final appearance and trophy drought would end next season! 

Till next year!

2018-19 Ranji Trophy: Jharkhand Review

It was a season where Jharkhand can look back and feel they were hard done by Tripura. Firstly, Tripura batted out 1 session and then frustrated Jharkhand by bowling only 22 overs in two and a half hours of play. Resulted in 3 points instead of 6 for Jharkhand who finished 3rd in the group just a single point behind 2nd placed Uttar Pradesh and miss out on a knock-out berth.

Jharkhand should look back with pride at their performance in this season. In 9 games they got 5 outright wins including one with bonus point, 3 with first-innings lead and one loss to Rajasthan. And all this was achieved with two of their first-choice players missing out on many games. Ishan Kishan on India A duty, while Shahbaz Nadeem got a maiden India call-up (although he did not get a game). 

• Varun Aaron continued his rise back in the ranks. Looking back that IPL snub seems to have done him a world of good, with that county stint and Deodhar Trophy selection, he continued his return to form with 2 fifers and now has been rewarded with an IPL recall. 
• Saurabh Tiwary got 2 centuries but not much else as he produced another 500 run season. But both 100s won the games for his team. 
• Anukul Roy was the stand-out performer with his all-round shows. The debutante finished with 30 wickets and 374 runs performing a few lower-order rescues. One to watch out for the future. 
• For Kumar Deobrat, this was a sort of coming of age season, as he lead the batting charts and got his maiden first-class century!

Round 1: Jharkhand (344 & 230/4d) drew with Assam (298 & 139/2); Jharkhand 3 Points 

First Class Debut: Anukul Roy 

Player of the Match: Ashish Kumar 

Highlights: Ishan Kishan (120 in 2nd), Ashish Kumar (5/32 in 1st) 

Round 2: Haryana (81 & 72) lost to Jharkhand (143 & 12/1) by 9 wickets; Jharkhand 6 Points, missed opportunity for bonus point. 

Player of the Match: Ajay Yadav 

Highlights: Varun Aaron (6/32 in 2nd) 

Round 3: Rajasthan (100 & 379) beat Jharkhand (152 & 235) by 92 runs: Jharkhand 0 Points 

First Class Debut: Alok Sharma 

Highlights: Varun Aaron (5/22 in 1st) 

Round 4: Goa (364 & 131) lost to Jharkhand (390 & 108/3) by 7 wickets; Jharkhand 6 Points 

First Class Debut: Rahul Prasad 

Player of the Match: Anukul Roy 

Highlights: Anukul Roy (127 in 1st), Rahul Prasad (6/45 in 2nd) 

Round 5: Jharkhand (172 & 288) beat Odisha (201 & 257) by 2 runs; Jharkhand 6 Points 

Highlights: Saurabh Tiwary (132* in 2nd) 

Round 6: Jharkhand (354 & 213/5d) drew with Uttar Pradesh (243 & 174/1); Jharkhand 3 Points 

Player of the Match: Rahul Shukla 

Highlights: Shahbaz Nadeem (109 in 1st), Rahul Shukla (5/65 in 1st) 

Round 7: Jharkhand (193 & 343) beat Services (267 & 188) by 81 runs; Jharkhand 6 Points 

Player of the Match: Utkarsh Singh 

Highlights: Utkarsh Singh (114 in 2nd), Shahbaz Nadeem (7/62 in 2nd) 

Round 8: Tripura (253 & 308) drew with Jharkhand (409 & 144/7); Jharkhand 3 Points. Jharkhand just fell short by 9 runs while Tripura bowled only 22 overs in two and a half hours of play in the final session! 

Player of the Match: Kumar Deobrat 

Highlights: Kumar Deobrat (140 in 1st), Nazim Siddiqui (134 in 1st) 

Round 9: Jammu & Kashmir (151 & 120) lost to Jharkhand (319/9d) by an innings & 48 runs; Jharkhand 7 Points 

Player of the Match: Saurabh Tiwary 

Highlights: Ajay Yadav (5/16 in 1st), Saurabh Tiwary (134 in 1st) 

Season Stats 

Top Scorers: 

1. Kumar Deobrat – 631 @57.36 
2. Saurabh Tiwary – 536 @41.23 
3. Ishank Jaggi – 506 @33.73 

Highest Score – Kumar Deobrat 140 vs Tripura 

Most Wickets 

1. Anukul Roy – 30 @22.70 
2. Varun Aaron – 25 @23.68 
3. Rahul Shukla – 23 @21.35 

Best Bowling – Shahbaz Nadeem – 7/62 vs Services 

Player Count: 17 

Debutantes: 3 

Captain Count: 2, Ishan Kishan & Nazim Siddiqui (when Ishan was on India A duty) 

Coming Up Next: Syed Mustaq Ali Trophy

Ranji Trophy 18-19: Jharkhand vs Assam

Match Summary: Jharkhand (344 & 230/4d) drew with Assam (298 & 140/2)

Points: Jharkhand 3, Assam 1

A solid performance to start the season. Jharkhand were missing Shahbaz Nadeem, who has finally got his maiden national call-up. Ishank Jaggi was back in action after sorting out the yo-yo test issues. 

Highlights:

• Playing XI: Kumar Deobrat, Nazim Siddiqui, Utkarsh Singh, Saurabh Tiwary, Ishank Jaggi, Ishan Kishan (c & wk), Anand Singh, Anukul Roy, Varun Aaron, Ashish Kumar, Ajay Yadav
• First Class Debut: Anukul Roy
• Ishan Kishan gets his 5th First-Class century, keeping him firmly in contention for the national keeping duties. 
• Maiden First-class half-century for Utkarsh Singh
• A fine all-round debut for Anukul Roy who top-scoring in the first innings & taking the team to a respectable score.
• A maiden 5-wicket haul for Ashish Kumar which ensured Jharkhand got the lead and also secured him the Player of the Match Award.

Season Stats:

• Top Scorer: Ishan Kishan – 138 @ 69.00
• Top Wicket-Taker: Ashish Kumar – 5 @ 13.80
• Player Count – 11

Points Tally: 3 from 1 game. Currently in 3rd place in the group.

Coming Up Next – Haryana who are 2nd in the group but also with 3 points.

Vijay Hazare Trophy 2018: Jharkhand Review

A bad season for Jharkhand comes to an end with the team finishing 5th in Group D of the Vijay Hazare Trophy.  Here is a summary of the action.

Ishan Kishan takes over as captain of the Jharkhand team, while Ishank Jaggi continues to miss out on account of injury.

Game 1: Vidarbha 300/10 (49) beat Jharkhand 293/7 (50) by 7 runs

• Key Performers: Rahul Shukla 4/52 (10), Shahbaz Nadeem 2/53 (10) & 21*, Atul Surwar 2/52 (9), Vikash Singh 2/78 (9) & 59* (37); Saurabh Tiwary 65 (77), Kumar Deobrat 60 (76). 
• A valiant 8th wicket unbeaten partnership off 85 runs off 50 balls between Vikash & Nadeem wasn’t enough for Jharkhand to cross the line.
• List A Debuts: Nazim Siddiqui, Atul Surwar, Sumit Kumar
• Nazim Siddiqui had a golden duck on debut!
• Vikash Singh recorded his highest List A Score & best bowling performance.

Game 2: Hyderabad 333/7 (50) beat Jharkhand 267 (46.5) by 66 runs

• Key Performers: Rahul Shukla 2/69 (9), Ishan Kishan 51 (65) & Atul Surwar 58* (57)
• Another valiant lower order partnership after a top order crumble!
• Nazim Siddiqui got his 2nd duck in a row in his 2nd List A Game!
• Virat Singh gets his 1st List A wicket.
• Maiden List A 50 for Atul Surwar

Game 3: Services 202/9 (50) lost to Jharkhand 203/5 (30.5) by 5 wickets

• Key Performers: Varun Aaron (3/20), Anukul Roy (2/20), Ishan Kishan 106 (75), Saurabh Tiwary 56* (67)
• Senior debut for U-19 World Cup star Anukul Roy, who had an excellent game. 
• 1st List A century for Ishan Kishan.

Game 4: Jharkhand 329/9 (50) lost to Saurashtra 333/6 (48.2) by 4 wickets

• Key Performers: Ishan Kishan 93(96), Sumit Kumar (64)
• List A debuts for Utkarsh Singh & Ashish Kumar
• Maiden List A Fifty for Sumit Kumar

Game 5: Jharkhand 288/9 (50) lost to Chhattisgarh 294/3 (46) by 7 wickets

• Key Performers: Saurabh Tiwary 107 (105), Kumar Deobrat 51 (74), Varun Aaron 2/51
• 5th List A century for Saurabh Tiwary

Game 6: Jharkhand 296/9 (50) beat Jammu & Kashmir 199/10 (46) by 97 runs

• Key Performers: Virat Singh 96 (97), Ashish Kumar 3/23 (7), Vikash Singh 3/37 (8), Anukul Roy 2/38 (10)
• Team captained by Virat Singh in the absence of the injured Ishan Kishan.
• Highest List A score for Virat Singh.

Season Stats

Top Scorers:

• Saurabh Tiwary: 322 @ 64.40 
• Ishan Kishan: 313 @ 78.25
• Virat Singh: 195 @ 32.50

Most Wickets:

• Vikash Singh: 8 @ 32.25
• Rahul Shukla: 8 @ 36.00
• Varun Aaron: 7 @ 34.14

That's it for this season with just the Irani Trophy and IPL left. Hoping to be back again next season where there is a good chance of Bihar also featuring. So might cover two teams instead of one!

Ranji Trophy 17-18: Jharkhand vs Jammu & Kashmir

Match Summary: Jammu & Kashmir (376 & 265/9d) beat Jharkhand (292/9d & 243) by 106 runs
Points: Jammu & Kashmir 6, Jharkhand 0

After the highs of last season, we reach the lows! Jharkhand lost to Jammu & Kashmir by 106 runs, thus ending all hopes for a knock-out berth. But it was heartening to see them play for a win on 4th day when they could have easily settled for a draw. There were good opening partnerships in both innings but not much to follow after that. Have to give credit to the team for the audacious attempt at the 4th innings chase. But they were simply outplayed by the J&K team.

Too much chopping and changing going on in the team!

Highlights

• Playing XI:Changes - too many of them!
• In: Utkarsh Singh, Anand Singh, Kumar Deobrat (all in their first appearance of the season), Sunny Gupta
• Out: Kaushal Singh, Ashish Kumar, Shasheem Rathour, Sumit Kumar (who was the star in the previous game!)
• Utkarsh Singh makes his first-class debut and first taste of senior cricket. Had been part of India U19s earlier this year. Decent performance on debut!
• Ishan Kishan crossed the landmark of 2000 FC runs in his 31st game.

Season Stats

• Top Scorer: Ishan Kishan - 427 @47.44
• Top Wicket-taker: Sunny Gupta - 17 @25.47
• Player Count: 20
• Captain Count: 2

Points Tally - 8 after 5 games. Drop down to 5th and out of contention of the Quarter-finals.

Coming Up Next
Jharkhand take a break in the next round before taking on defending champions Gujarat in the last round. They can play spoilport for others though!