Ranji Trophy heavyweights Mumbai might have won the championship a record 39 times, but this season they looked so woefully out of form that at one point they didn’t even seem to make it to the knockout stages.
But one man changed it all — Zaheer Khan. India’s pace bowling spearhead for a major part of the last decade produced a ferocious spell against Madhya Pradesh picking up five wickets for 79 runs in 19 overs. He once again showed what a fit Zaheer can do to opposition batsmen.
But that was followed by what has been Zaheer’s story over the last couple of years. After a terrific performance, he injured his calf and didn’t play the two knockout matches.
Mumbai avert toss farce, enter final
Not sure of Rohit's availability: Agarkar
Despite his absence, Mumbai have made it to the title clash. But they would have wanted to have Zaheer in the line- up for the final.
When the final of the Ranji Trophy will be on at the Wankhede Stadium with Mumbai taking on Saurashtra, the man himself would be at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bangalore.
Zaheer made it clear that he would take some time to recover completely. “Training and injury rehabilitation is going well at the NCA, but it will be a while before I get back to bowling,” he said.
Having last played for India in the third Test against England in Kolkata in December, he was left out for the fourth Test in Nagpur. He missed the subsequent T20 series against the Englishmen, as well as the T20 and ODI series against Pakistan followed by the ongoing ODI series against England.
Sources in the BCCI had told MAIL TODAY that he had expressed his intention of working on his fitness for the Test series against Australia starting in February.
And he showed that he was working in that direction by taking a short break before coming back to play for Mumbai in the Ranji Trophy.
He will now get to play the Irani Trophy, from February 6 to 10, and a couple of matches in the Vijay Hazare Trophy to prove his match fitness going into the clash against the Aussies.
Mumbai will miss Zaheer in Ranji final
Zaheer expressed his intention of working on his fitness for the Test series against Australia starting in February.
Mail Today – Wed 23 Jan, 2013 12:28 PM ISTMatches
-
- RAJ won by 4 wkts.Eliminator
vs. 
HYDRAJ - CHE won by 48 runsQualifier 1
vs. 
MUMCHE - ENG won by 170 runs1st Test
vs. 
NZENG
Latest Photos
Featured Interactives
MORE TOP STORIES TODAY
Royals will meet Mumbai Indian in the second qualifier. More » Hodge blinder floors Sunrisers
[ROUND-UP]: Chandila planned to throw May 17 game. More » Revealed: Sreesanth's betting company and CSK-Vindoo link
New Delhi, May 22 (IANS) Sachin Tendulkar will not take further part in the Indian Premier League owing to an injury on his left hand, his team Mumbai Indians said Wednesday. More » Tendulkar out of IPL with hand injury
New Zealand's Neil Wagner said Wednesday he wanted to make England's batsmen "hate him" and "get in their face" as the Black Caps look to square the Test series with victory at Headingley. More » Kiwi Wagner wants England to 'hate him'
New Delhi, May 22 (IANS) The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) Wednesday blamed Sahara Adventure Sports Limited for the failure of the arbitration and said the body "cannot be held responsible" … More » BCCI blames Sahara for arbitration failure
Australian batsman David Warner was Wednesday found guilty of breaching Cricket Australia's code of behaviour over a Twitter tirade at two journalists and fined Aus$5,750 (US$5,608). More » David Warner fined for Twitter outburst
LEEDS, United Kingdom, May 22, 2013 (AFP) - Joe Root said Wednesday that England would look to carry on from where they left off against New Zealand at Lord's during the second and final Test at his Headingley … More » 'England can build on Lord's success'
It is his role in keeping some dubious cricketers suspected of match fixing outside the team. More » The feat Sachin never got praise for
Chennai defeat Mumbai by 48 runs in the first Qualifier at Kotla. More » Kings boss their way to fifth IPL final
LEEDS, United Kingdom, May 22, 2013 (AFP) - New Zealand wicketkeeper BJ Watling was ruled out Wednesday of the second and final Test against England at Headingley starting Friday. More » New Zealand's Watling out of second Test
COLOMBO (Reuters) - Sri Lanka left-arm fast bowler Chanaka Welegedara has been ruled out of the Champions Trophy starting in England and Wales next month with an ankle injury. Welegedara will be replaced … More » Welegedara out of Champions Trophy
By Nick Mulvenney SYDNEY (Reuters) - Australia are rightly underdogs for the upcoming Ashes series in England but will do everything they can to bring the coveted urn back home, skipper Michael Clarke … More » Underdogs ready for Ashes scrap: Clarke
New Delhi, May 21 (IANS) Pune Warriors India, owned by Sahara India Pariwar, pulled out of the already scandal-hit Indian Premier League (IPL) Tuesday and announced that they will not renew their sponsorship … More » Sahara pulls out of IPL
India's apex court asks the Board to clean up the gentleman's game. More » Supreme Court raps 'lackadaisical' BCCI
One of the SunRisers' key bowlers, Ishant was nowhere to be seen and team officials said he was still down with fever. More » Ishant doubtful for win-or-go home clash
Starting off as the team's first-choice wicketkeeper, a string of poor performances with the bat saw Patel being dropped. More » Parthiv glad to have peaked at right time
New Delhi, May 22 -- More than 13 years after he headed the probe into match-fixing in cricket, former Indian Police Service officer Ravi N Sawani has been approached by the Board of Control for Cricket … More » BCCI falls back on tried and tested Sawani
Imran, who has been fitted with a spinal brace to aid recovery, fell from a fork-lift taking him to a poll campaign podium on May 7. More » Imran Khan discharged from hospital
[SPOT-FIXING ROUND-UP] Actor Vindoo Dara Singh arrested. More » Court extends Sreesanth's custody
Clarke has thrown his support behind Warner, saying he could still captain Australia despite facing a disciplinary hearing over a Twitter rant. More » Warner has Clarke's backing
England named an unchanged squad for the second Test against New Zealand at Headlingley, after batsman Ian Bell and spin bowler Graeme Swann both overcame illness. More » Bell, Swann fit for second NZ Test
He might be a bad boy, but he wasn’t a bad bowler. More » Let down by his own character
Corruption in cricket is as old as the apathy of the sport's administrators. More » [VOX] Crime and lack of punishment
DUBLIN, May 22, 2013 (AFP) - Pakistan are keener than ever to get back on the field for the first of two one-day internationals against Ireland on Thursday after their second ODI against Scotland on the … More » Cricket: Pakistan raring to go against Ireland
Sir Ian Botham is confident James Anderson will far exceed his England record of 383 Test wickets after the Lancashire seamer broke the 300 barrier during last week's series-opening victory over New Zealand … More » Botham backs Jimmy to break his record
New Delhi, May 21 (IANS) Hit by the recent spot-fixing scandal, the Rajasthan Royals will have to come out strong to take on the impressive Sunrisers Hyderabad in the Indian Premier League (IPL) eliminator … More » Shaken Royals take on rising Hyderabad
When the two face each other in Qualifier 1 of the Indian T20 league on Tuesday, with a spot in the final the reward for the winner, the rivalry will demand a lot more than usual. More » More than just spot in the final
Mumbai Indians skipper Rohit Sharma doesn't want his team to get distracted by the spot-fixing controversy in the Indian Premier League. More » Focus is on playing good cricket: Rohit
"The feeling is quite similar as no one gave the SunRisers a chance in the tournament, and we have qualified for the playoffs" More » 'Hyderabad's success reminds me of 1983'
It seems Rajasthan Royals, caught in the middle of the spot-fixing scandal involving three of their players, want to stay away from the spotlight as much as possible. More » Rajasthan feel heat ahead of playoff
Cricket Australia said Tuesday it had no immediate plan to curb the use of social media by players after a Twitter rant by David Warner, but suggested it could happen in the future. More » Australia don't plan on Twitter clampdown
Chennai Super Kings coach Stephen Fleming said it was disappointing that spot fixing has overshadowed the IPL but hoped that the tournament would finish on a winning note. More » 'Corruption shadow over IPL's good work'
SG Test balls may be used for Ranji Trophy and junior tournaments. More » Kumble moots neutral venues, SG balls
"The contracts of all three players have been suspended pending enquiry," a team statement said. "We have already filed a complaint with the Delhi Police against all three players." More » Rajasthan suspend tainted players
Sensational revelations may be fine but the police needs solid evidence to prove the charges against ricketers arrested for spot-fixing to secure their conviction in court. More » Delhi cops face challenge in building case