Ranji Trophy: Delhi hope to continue supremacy over Maharashtra

The capital side were dealt a blow on Wednesday with pacer Pradeep Sangwan doubtful.

As the Delhi Ranji Trophy team converged at the Wankhede Stadium here on Wednesday, their hopes of putting up another strong performance would have been buoyed after looking at the green top laid out for their Group B encounter against Maharashtra.

The Wankhede pitch promises to be favourable to pacers, but Delhi were dealt a blow with Pradeep Sangwan, who got five wickets in the last match, doubtful for the clash against Maharashtra. (Getty Images)

With three frontline pacers in their armoury, Delhi would have fancied to make the most of the bouncy Wankhede track.

However, later in the evening, the team from the Indian capital received a setback with Pradeep Sangwan a doubtful starter for the match.

Sangwan, who claimed five wickets in Delhi’s innings and 83-run victory over Assam in the opener, suffered a side strain. “Sangwan is doubtful for the match,” said Delhi’s coach KP Bhaskar.

Maharashtra, meanwhile, will miss the services of their batting mainstay and skipper Kedar Jadhav, who is with the Indian ODI team for the New Zealand series. Swapnil Gugale will take charge in Jadhav’s absence.

Delhi and Maharashtra come into this contest with contrasting results in their opener. While Delhi managed a bonus-point victory over Assam, Maharashtra lost to lowly Jharkhand by six wickets. Overall too, Delhi have maintained their supremacy over Maharashtra by never losing a match in their last 11 Ranji Trophy contests.