If you think that the festive season is over, think again!
In a country where cricket is a religion, with the national team playing various international series and the Ranji Trophy just around the corner, the festive season never ends!
The Ranji Trophy is 80 years old now. Let’s look at some facts that you probably did not know about it:
1. The Ranji Trophy was the first of it’s kind. It was the premier major first class level domestic competition in India.
2. The contest commenced as “The Cricket Championship of India” after a meeting of the Board of Control of Cricket in India in July 1934. The first match took place in 1934-35.
3. The competition is named after England and Sussex cricketer Kumar Shri Ranjitsinhi also known as, Jam Sahib of Nawanagar, or “Ranji”. It was named after him even though he barely played for his country.
4. In the first season, the winners of the Ranji Trophy received a trophy donated by the Maharajah Bhupinder Singh of Patiala.
5. The first round of Ranji Trophy got over a day before scheduled. In the 13 matches that were played only 3 resulted in a result, while 10 did not.
6. The rules were pretty strange! If the final result of a match was a draw, then the outcome was determined on the basis of the performance of the two teams in the first innings.
7. There has been only one tie in the history of Ranji Trophy- between Southern Punjab and Baroda.
8. Bombay established a remarkable stranglehold over the tournament, winning 15 straight titles and 18 in 19 years.
9. Rajasthan, on the unfortunate end, reached the Ranji Trophy final eight times between 1960-61 and 1973-74 and lost all of them.
10. As surprising as it may sound, Hyderabad holds the record for both the highest and the lowest team scores at 944 declared and 21 all out respectively.
This year, the defending champions are Karnataka. Here is hoping for a sensational Ranji season!
