Khejroliya Becomes 3rd Bowler to Pick 4 Wickets in as Many Consecutive Balls in Ranji Trophy

Madhya Pradesh pacer Kulwant Khejroliya on Monday became the only third bowler in the 89 years history of the coveted Ranji Trophy to take four wickets in as many consecutive deliveries against Baroda in their Ranji Trophy match at Indore.

Indore (Madhya Pradesh): Madhya Pradesh speedster Kulwant Khejroliya inched his name in the history books, becoming the only third bowler to pick four wickets on consecutive deliveries in a Ranji Trophy match on Monday.

Khejroliya, a left-arm pacer, achieved this feat in the 95th over of Baroda’s second innings on the final day of the Ranji Trophy match after Madhya Pradesh enforced a follow-on on the visitors at the Holkar Stadium here. The left-arm pacer also became the third Madhya Pradesh bowler to take a hat-trick in the Ranji Trophy and overall 80th player in India's domestic red-ball competition.

The 31-year-old, in his mind-boggling spell, bagged a five-wicket haul, conceding only 34 runs as Madhya Pradesh secured a win by an innings and 34 runs.

Khejroliya, who has also represented Delhi in Ranji Trophy, was wicket-less in his first 11 overs of the second innings. He then sent four batters back to the pavilion in as many deliveries, wrecking havoc on Baroda lineup. He removed Shashwat Rawat (105), Mahesh Pithiya (0), Bhargav Bhatt (0) and Akash Singh (0).

Only two players have achieved this rare feat before, including Delhi's Shankar Saini (against Himachal Pradesh in 1988) and Jammu` and Kashmir's Mohammed Mudhasir (against Rajasthan in 2018).

Madhya Pradesh coach Chandrakant Pandit praised Kheljroliya's bowling effort. "It is rare feat. It doesn't happen frequently that a bowler pick four wickets in four consecutive deliveries. At one moment, we (Madhya Pradesh players and support staff) had thought that Baroda has a chance to escape from the jaws of defeat, and we might have to bat again. And suddenly, coming in and achieving this figures was special," Chandrakant Pandit, himself a former India stumper, told ETV Bharat over the phone.

"As they say, you cannot predict that what will happen in the game of cricket and hence it was great experience for me as well because I haven't seen something like that in my career before. Nobody must have thought that the match will change so drastically within five minutes or inside one over. And surely, his today's performance has motivated and boosted others confidence as well," added Pandit, who played 5 Tests and 36 ODIs.

According to Pandit, Kulwant's spell powered Madhya Pradesh to not only to make a strong comeback but secured a win.

Coming to the match, the 31-year-old's devastating spell came after Baroda had made a decent fightback after being bowled out for 134 runs in the first innings. Madhya Pradesh was bowled out for 454 in their first essay.

Following on after a 322-run deficit, Baroda opener Jyotsnil Singh's made 83 and Shashwat Rawat scored 105. It looked like Baroda would overhaul MP's lead and make the home side bat again. However, Khejroliya, who has also played for Royal Challengers Bangalore in Indian Premier League, came out with a magical spell and picked up five wickets within a blink of an eye as Baroda collapsed from 255 for 5 to 270 all out.

This was Madhya Pradesh's third win in six matches and they are now at the top of the table in Elite Group D. They will next face Jammu and Kashmir in Indore.

• Bowlers to take four wickets in 4 balls in Ranji Trophy

Shankar Saini (Delhi vs Himachal Pradesh) in 1988
Mohammed Mudhasir (Jammu & Kashmir vs Rajasthan) in 2018
Kulwant Khejroliya (Madhya Pradesh vs Baroda) in 2024

• Bowlers to take a hat-trick in Ranji Trophy for Madhya Pradesh

Hiralal Gaekwad (Madhya Pradesh vs Rajasthan) - 1962/63 season
Ravi Yadav (Madhya Pradesh vs Uttar Pradesh) - 2019/20 season
Kulwant Khejroliya (Madhya Pradesh vs Baroda) - 2023/24 season

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