Ranji Trophy Diary: Smoke on the water in Patna and Mumbai to Assam via Sri Lanka!

Bihar is a ‘dry state’. Its only ground, which used to host international cricket, not so much.

The Moin-ul-Haq Stadium in Patna, home to the Bihar senior team in the Ranji Trophy 2024-25, recently rolled out the red carpet for ‘Group C’ rival Karnataka.

Following the previous edition of the tournament, which saw controversies over the stadium’s dilapidated state and infighting within the Bihar Cricket Association, maximum efforts have been made to whitewash the association’s image this time around. Quite literally, as not a single square inch of the arena was left untouched by a fresh (three-day-old) coat of lime.

Nevertheless, Rajendra Arlekar, the Governor of the state, invited as the Chief Guest for the game, seemed a happy man. So, mission accomplished. Perhaps he wouldn’t have been as pleased had he arrived on the second day of the round-three clash.

The city had been lashed by heavy rains overnight, leaving puddles across the entire green expanse of the ground. Things looked so gloomy that the visiting team didn’t even leave its hotel.

The super soppers were deployed and the groundsmen toiled to salvage at least a few overs. When no significant improvement was seen, blow-dryers were brought out. What followed next, however, had the photojournalist scrambling to change his lenses: right in the middle of the ground, dung cakes were being burned in a desperate attempt to dry a large, wet patch. Within hours, multiple fires dotted the turf, and, with them, logic went up in smoke.

Interestingly, this isn’t the first time this venue has run into such challenges.

During the 1996 World Cup, Patna was awarded a league game between Kenya and Zimbabwe. Then Chief Minister Lalu Prasad Yadav inaugurated the pavilion before the match. Unfortunately, steady rain set in, and the covers were promptly called for. Lalu decided to intervene, summoning the state helicopter to dry the playing area!

The plan, however, backfired massively when the chopper flew so low that it blew the cover off entirely, spilling the accumulated water onto the pitch. The game had to be postponed to the next day, and Kenya, which had the upper hand after taking three quick wickets, ended up losing on the rescheduled day. Patna has only hosted one men’s international game since that incident.

Well-timed move

Late entrant: Sumit Ghadigaonkar’s entry into India’s domestic system came as late as last season when he began playing for Assam as a local player.
| Photo Credit:
SHIV KUMAR PUSHPAKAR

Among the 38 teams that endure the grind of the Ranji Trophy every season, there are many cricketers with intriguing backgrounds who quietly go about their work. One such cricketer is Sumit Ghadigaonkar, who notched up a superb century for Assam in the first innings and followed it up with a fifty in the second innings against Delhi in the national capital during the third round of matches.

At 32, Ghadigaonkar may not have a realistic shot at higher honours, but that doesn’t diminish the sincerity with which he and many others represent their respective teams. Originally from Mumbai, he never managed to secure a spot on his home team.

Ghadigaonkar was playing club cricket in Mumbai’s maidans and working for the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) before a friend encouraged him to try his luck in Sri Lanka. It was in Colombo in 2020 that he played his maiden First-Class game for Chilaw CC against Tamil Union. Sri Lanka allows two overseas professionals in each domestic team. “One of my friends was playing in Sri Lanka. He offered me an opportunity. So, I went there and played one season. It was a very nice experience,” he says.

After a season, however, Ghadigaonkar had to return to India due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Since the 2023-24 season, he has been playing for Assam as a local player after being transferred to Guwahati with RBI. The move to Assam seems to have paid off, as he scored his first century in India’s First-Class system last week.