Lately, the Khans have become the taste of Mumbai. This alludes not to the well-known Bollywood Khans of Bandra but rather to the up-and-coming cricket players from Taximen Colony in Central Mumbai’s Kurla district. With their outstanding on-field exploits, Sarfaraz Khan and Musheer Khan have captured the attention of the city and might soon be the buzz of Indian cricket.
In the changing room after Musheer’s 2018 Mumbai debut, Sarfaraz—who is currently representing his nation—promised his teammates, saying, ‘Whatever you guys do, he will do better.’ Musheer supported his older brother’s confidence on Monday by demonstrating the tenacity Mumbai needs to win the Ranji Trophy. Mumbai’s vice captain Shams Mulani recollected, “That’s what his (Sarfaraz) feeling was,” recognising Musheer’s tough demeanour.
Mumbai has taken the lead in the Ranji Trophy final against Vidarbha because to Musheer’s courageous, undefeated half century at the Wankhede. Musheer was undefeated at 51 at the end of the second day’s play, with Mumbai having forced a 119-run advantage in the first innings to reach 141 for two in the second innings. Mumbai now lead by a comfortable 260 runs.
From Mumbai’s perspective, it was crucial that they avoided losing too many wickets following their Day 2 victory against Vidarbha at the close of lunch. As it transpired, the home team needed someone to stop the losing streak after losing their openers, Bhupen Lalwani and Prithvi Shaw, in rapid succession. Musheer, who is only 19 years old and participated in the Under 19 World Cup in South Africa a few months ago, was up to the challenge.
Musheer had the courage and tenacity that the No. 3 batsman are supposed to have, blunting all that Umesh Yadav & Co. threw at him. His disposition was towards patience, and he took his time reaching the scoreboard’s milestones. Ajinkya Rahane was at the other end, and Musheer was a skillful foil to help his captain construct the innings.
Rahane, who had been out of form for the whole Ranji edition, scored his best point total of the year (58 not out). Musheer was firm in his defence, even if the captain occasionally appeared a little uneasy and hesitant. They have combined to contribute 107 runs for the third wicket that is still undefeated, with Rahane scoring at 53.21 and Musheer scoring at 37.58.
Musheer is just as skilled against pacers as he is against spinners, because to his identical style. Harsh Dubey and Aditya Sarwate, the two spinners from Vidarbha, were unable to get past his defences, and he was only biding his time to hold out. Mulani, the senior spinner for Mumbai, stated, “Musheer and Sarfaraz have different game styles, but whatever these guys do is working.” “He did a great job at it. And he’s been demonstrating his readiness by doing that. Given that they come from a family of preparedness, it goes without saying that they practise a lot.”
Musheer made an instant impression on Mumbai’s quest for their 41st consecutive title, even if he was limited to playing in the knockout stages this season. When the team was in serious trouble in the quarterfinal round against Baroda, he smashed an undefeated double century. He stabilised the Mumbai innings with a half century in the semifinal match against Tamil Nadu, but Shardul Thakur’s century stole the match from the visitors. He was out for six in the first inning of Sunday’s final when the ball was moving quickly. However, he changed things a day later to maintain his position.
He demonstrated that during the knockouts. Entering the World Cup (Under 19) knockout stages without having played red ball cricket, Mulani remarked, “It was amazing how he performed and applied himself today when the team needed it most—holding one end up.” Musheer finished second in the Under 19 World Cup scoring competition.
Sarfaraz has long been Mumbai’s batting pillar, but his obligations to the national team prevented him from playing in the championship. Now, Musheer is compensating for the older brother’s lack of presence.
