Tanush Kotian’s Century Powers Mumbai to Irani Cup Victory After 27 Years

Key Performances and Match Results

Mumbai 537 (Sarfaraz 222*, Rahane 97, Mukesh 5-110) and 329 for 8 decl (Kotian 114*, Shaw 76, Saransh 6-121) drew with Rest of India 416 (Abhimanyu 191, Jurel 93, Kotian 3-101).

Match Analysis

On the fifth day of the Irani Cup, Mumbai won the match based on their first-innings lead, thanks to a century from Tanush Kotian, their second first-class player. Mumbai had not lifted the trophy since the 1997–1998 campaign.

Mumbai batted through the day, and Kotian added 94 runs to his overnight total of 20, declaring with a 450-run lead when Rest of India consented to finish the match as a draw. Batting at No. 8 or below, Kotian became the first batsman to reach fifty twice in an Irani Cup match. Saransh Jain, an offspinner, took six wickets, but the rest of India could not bowl Mumbai out in time to challenge their total.

With Kotian and Sarfaraz Khan at the crease, Mumbai jumped out to a 274-run advantage early in the day. In the fourth over of the day, Saransh trapped Sarfaraz leg before wicket, and two overs later, he had Shardul Thakur stumped.

However, Mumbai’s victory was cemented when Kotian and Mohit Awasthi batted 200 balls and added 158 runs.

Ishan Kishan, Sai Sudharsan, and Devdutt Padikkal were among the eight bowlers used by the rest of India, but they were unable to add to their two early-morning strikes.

Kotian, who scored 64 runs in the opening session, batted out 150 balls for his undefeated 114, hitting 10 fours and a six.

Awasthi, on the other hand, got his first-ever first-class half-century by hitting four fours and one six of his own.