Vijay Hazare trophy is important, but I want to set the Ranji Trophy record straight, says Vinayak Samant

It has been the nature of India’s domestic set-up to prioritise Ranji Trophy success over inter-state white-ball tournaments. This is particularly true for Mumbai cricket, who are seeking for redemption this season after their forgettable outing last time around. The same goes for their re-appointed head coach, Samant, under whom the team struggled to carry on the success from the Vijay Hazare trophy success into the red-ball season.

“Surya (Yadav) is more caring and reads the game very well. Now that we have a current India one-day player for the whole tournament, Shreyas Iyer, the captain, it changes the equation altogether. His experience and his form will make a lot of difference,” Samant said.

Last season’s failure was a combination of injuries, poor captaincy and team selection, and some careless batting by key batsmen. But Samant took up the responsibility for the team failing to qualify for the knockout stages, while also suggesting that a lack of support from selectors was a key reason for the mediocre season. 

“Actually, I was making mistakes. I realised later on that I should have ensured the players that I was backing didn’t lose their place in the side. But since I didn’t get the support a coach deserves, I was struggling to keep the players’ trust intact,” he said.