Punjab vs Vidarbha Match Prediction
Punjab will take on Vidarbha in Elite Group D match at the Punjab Cricket Association IS Bindra Stadium, Mohali, Chandigarh from Tuesday, January 24. The action will kickstart from 9:30 PM IST.
Punjab stunned Madhya Pradesh in their previous encounter and thrashed them by an innings and 122 runs to consolidate their position in the top two. They are placed second with 26 points, seven clear of third-placed Vidarbha.
Vidarbha also registered an 18-run win over Gujarat but with just one group stage match left, their chances for quarter-final qualifications are over. Regardless, the team would look to end their Ranji Trophy 2022-23 campaign on a high.
Punjab vs Vidarbha Match Chance of Winning
Riding high on confidence after beating defending champions Madhya Pradesh, who had won each of their five earlier matches in this season, Punjab look all set to clinch their fourth win. Notably, Punjab are unbeaten in the ongoing Ranji Trophy 2022-23. Punjab have seen new match winners in every match and their last match against Madhya Pradesh proved it again. The batting department, which was relying heavily on captain Mandeep Singh and opener Prabhsimran Singh, was lit up by superb knocks from Anmolpreet Singh (124) and Neha Wadhera (214). Their knock and excellent bowling display from the hosts helped them enforce a follow-on and thrash Madhya Pradesh. As expected the bowling unit was on the money from the very beginning. Baltej Singh continued his good run with three wickets in the match and Siddarth Kaul also joined the party this time with six wickets in the match. India international Arshdeep Singh did not pick any wicket in the match but managed to pick four in the second innings. Leg-spinner Mayank Markande also picked five wickets in the match.
Punjab have peaked just at the right time. Three of their batters have scored over 300 runs now. Also, three batters from the team have amassed over 200 runs. The batting unit looks in-form all of a sudden. In the bowling department, Baltej Singh is the second-highest wicket-taker of the season. He has been very well supported by experienced pacer Kaul and very talented Markande who have 18 and 17 wickets to their name respectively. Arshdeep Singh is very unlikely to feature in the next match as he would join the India T20I side for the T20I series versus New Zealand.
Like we have seen so far in this season, Vidarbha's batting unit has crumbled time and again. In the first innings against Gujarat they were bundled out for 74 runs. The second innings saw them post 254 on the board and despite setting a paltry 73-run target they ended up winning the match thanks to Aditya Sarwate's six-wicket haul in the second innings. However, Punjab don't have a shaky batting unit like Punjab's and scope for error would be minimal. In three of their last four matches, Vidarbha have registered below-par scores under 200 in an innings. Four of their batters have scored over 300 runs but one one has an average over 40. Two batters have scored over 200 runs, however, both of them average under 30. The bowling unit has been heavily dependent on Sarwate and his fellow spinner Akshay Wakhare.
Pumped up Punjab will look to hold onto the momentum and register another win before entering the knockout rounds.
Our Prediction
Punjab will enter the match as favourites and there are multiple reasons behind it. The side has peaked at the right time and have a more robust batting unit now. Baltej Singh has been the pick of their bowlers and the very experienced Kaul has also gained momentum after picking six wickets in the last match against Madhya Pradesh. Vidarbha have a sluggish and very vulnerable batting unit which will be tested big time in front of in-form Punjab bowlers. As mentioned above the bowling unit has also relied heavily on the exploits of Sarwate. However, Punjab are expected to be at ease at their home ground in the upcoming match. Also, their batters are very good players of spin and are expected to be in good stead again. Unbeaten Punjab will also up their ante as they would like to enter the quarter-finals with a lot of momentum on their side.
- Punjab to win - 1.28 (Melbet)
- Vidarbha to win - 3.30 (Melbet)
Punjab vs Vidarbha Tournament Prediction & Betting Tips 2022
In the previous edition of the Ranji trophy, Punjab qualified for the quarter-finals but suffered a 10-wicket defeat against the eventual champions Madhya Pradesh. The Mandeep Singh-led team began its previous campaign with a draw against Himachal Pradesh and followed it with back-to-back comfortable wins over Haryana and Tripura. Appreciably, Punjab topped their four-team group.
In the ongoing season, Punjab are unbeaten after six matches. Also, they have now secured their place in the quarter-finals after beating Madhya Pradesh. Even a defeat against Vidarbha would not hinder their campaign. However, with the knockout games approaching, Punjab would look to brush themselves up further. The side have now placed them as one of the contenders to grab the coveted trophy.
Last season Vidarbha won one game and played two draws. They finished second in Elite Group G but failed to move into the knockout rounds.
In the ongoing season, the team kicked off their campaign with two wins but things have gone downhill for them since then. Back-to-back defeats against Jammu and Kashmir and Madhya Pradesh, and then a draw against Chandigarh dented their chance to qualify in the quarter-finals big time. They managed a win against Gujarat in their last match, however, that would not be enough for them to qualify for the quarter-finals. Notably, second-placed Punjab are seven points ahead of Vidarbha and toppling them is mathematically impossible now.
Notably, the top two teams from the groups will qualify for the quarter-finals.
Punjab vs Vidarbha Match Toss Prediction
The PCA IS Bindra Stadium in Mohali has two matches in this season so far. In the last match Madhya Pradesh elected to bowl first and ended up losing the match by a big margin. Earlier, Jammu and Kashmir won the toss and elected to bat first but lost the match to Punjab by four wickets. The last time a Ranji Trophy match was played here before the ongoing season, Punjab opted to bat first after winning the toss against Delhi and the match ended in a draw. On the two occasions before the Punjab-Delhi encounter, Punjab won the toss and decided to field first against Tamil Nadu and Kerala. Though the game against Tamil Nadu yielded a draw, the Punjab-Kerala match resulted in a 10-wicket win for the hosts. Last year, India hosted Sri Lanka in a Test match at the venue and won the game comprehensively after electing to bat first after winning the toss.
Understandably, the team winning the toss on January 24 will be tempted to bat first and post a huge first innings total to put the opposition under pressure.
Weather Report
Rain showers are expected during the course of the four days of play from January 24 to January 27. The temperature will hover around 19 degree celsius with humidity in excess of 90 percent. The wind speed is expected to be around 8 to 13 kmph per hour.
Punjab Player List
Punjab Squad
Abhishek Sharma, Prabhsimran Singh, Naman Dhir, Mandeep Singh(c), Ramandeep Singh, Sanvir Singh, Anmol Malhotra(w), Siddarth Kaul, Vinay Choudhary, Gurnoor Brar, Baltej Singh, Mayank Markande, Anmolpreet Singh, Harpreet Brar, Jass Inder Singh
Punjab Predicted XI
Prabhsimran SinghBatsmanAbhishek SharmaAll-rounderNaman DhirBatsman
|
Mandeep Singh (c) |
Bastman |
|
Nehal Wadhera |
Batsman |
|
Anmol Malhotra |
Batsman and Wicket-keeper |
|
Sanvir Singh |
All-rounder |
|
Baltej Singh |
Bowler |
|
Gurnoor Brar |
Bowler |
|
Vinay Choudhary |
Bowler |
|
Mayank Markande |
Bowler |
Punjab Team Form
Punjab registered their first win of the season against Gujarat in their last encounter. Before the game against Gujarat, Punjab had played out three draws on the trot against Chandigarh, Railways, and Tripura. In their second last encounter, Punjab defeated Jammu and Kashmir by four wickets. Punjab’s biggest win of the season came when they defeated unbeaten defendinging champions Madhya Pradesh by an innings and 122 runs in their last match.
Vidarbha Team List
Vidarbha Squad
Faiz Fazal (c), Atharva Taide, Ganesh Satish, Sanjay Raghunath, Akshay Wadkar (wk), Apoorv Wankhade, Rajneesh Gurbani, Aditya Sarwate, Akshay Wakhare, Yash Thakur, Aditya Thakare Siddhesh Wath, Mohit Kale, Lalit M Yadav, Harsh Dubey
Vidarbha Predicted XI:
|
Faiz Fazal (c) |
Batsman |
|
Sanjay R |
All-rounder |
|
Atharva Taide |
Batsman |
|
G Satish |
Batsman |
|
Apoorva Wankhede |
Batsman |
|
Aditya Sarwate |
All-rounder |
|
Akshay Wadkar |
Batsman and Wicket-keeper |
|
Rajneesh Gurbani |
Bowler |
|
Akshay Wakhare |
Bowler |
|
Yash Thakur |
Bowler |
|
Aditya T |
Bowler |
Vidarbha Team Form
Vidarbha defeated Railways and Tripura to kick off their campaign before losing to Jammu and Kashmir, and Madhya Pradesh in their following matches. Their second last match against Chandigarh ended in a draw. The Akshay Wadkar-led side registered an 18-run win over Gujarat in their last match.
Punjab vs Vidarbha Head to Head
Punjab and Vidarbha have clashed against each other on four occasions in Ranji Trophy. Three matches have ended in a draw and Vidarbha have emerged triumphant one time.
Punjab vs Vidarbha Betting Odds
Punjab to win
Punjab will enter the match as favourites and there are multiple reasons behind it. The side has peaked at the right time and have a more robust batting unit now. Baltej Singh has been the pick of their bowlers and the very experienced Kaul has also gained momentum after picking six wickets in the last match against Madhya Pradesh. Vidarbha have a sluggish and very vulnerable batting unit which will be tested big time in front of in-form Punjab bowlers. As mentioned above the bowling unit has also relied heavily on the exploits of Sarwate. However, Punjab are expected to be at ease at their home ground in the upcoming match. Also, their batters are very good players of spin and are expected to be in good stead again. Unbeaten Punjab will also up their ante as they would like to enter the quarter-finals with a lot of momentum on their side.
Punjab vs Vidarbha Top Team Batsmen
Mandeep Singh to be Punjab’s best batsman
Punjab captain Mandeep Singh scored only four runs in the previous outing against Vidarbha and he would definitely look to spend some time in the middle and score heavily against Vidarbha before his team's quarter-final match. He is currently the third-highest run-scorer for his team with 327 runs in six matches at an average of 54.50. A hundred and a fifty have come off his blade in this season. Overall, he has scored 6096 runs in 90 first-class matches at an average of 48.76.
Faiz Fazal to be Vidarbha’s top batter
Senior Vidarbha batsman Faiz Fazal is the second leading run-scorer for his team currently. He has scored 372 runs in six matches at an average of 33.81. Two hundreds and a fifty have come off his bat in the ongoing Ranji Trophy 2022-23 season. Since scoring a hundred in each of the two innings against Railways, Fazal has managed to score just one fifty in his last nine innings. However, in his last match of the ongoing season, he is expected to give it his all. Overall, the veteran has scored 9109 runs in 134 matches at an average of 41.78. He has 24 hundreds and 39 fifties to his name in first-class cricket.
Punjab vs Vidarbha Top Team Bowler
Baltej Singh to be Punjab’s best bowler
Right-arm pacer Baltej Singh is Punjab’s leading wicket-taker of the season with 31 wickets in four matches. Against Gujarat, Baltej bagged 11 wickets in the match to be declared as the Player of the Match. In his second-last match against Jammu and Kashmir, Baltej registered a five-wicket haul in both the innings. In the following match against Madhya Pradesh, he picked two wickets in the first innings and one in the second. In total, the 32-year-old has registered 86 wickets in 24 first-class matches at an average of 20.44. Also, he has five five-fers to his name.
Yash Thakur to be Vidarbha's to bowler
Right-arm pacer Yash Thakur is expected to spend a good time at the IS Bindra Stadium, Mohali. Pacers have enjoyed a lot of success at the venue. In the last match, pacers picked 20 wickets in comparison to nine from the spinners. The 24-year-old has picked 17 wickets in five matches at an average of 20.23 in the ongoing season.