Ones who closely follow Indian domestic cricket will know how much cricket clubs and players are co-dependent on each other. In order to become successful in the country's top-tier domestic league, Ranji Trophy, it is vital for teams as well as players to have a sense of loyalty towards each other.
Mumbai, for instance, has been a great example of how veteran players lead the team towards success. The team has won Ranji Trophy 41 times, which is the most number of wins by any Ranji side. The sole reason behind their success is the faith in its veteran players.
However, in the last three to five years, the team has been passive towards its senior players and amid the cut-throat competition, the team has been experimenting constantly. One such player who has been prey to the team's passiveness is the domestic legend, Wasim Jaffer.
Just to put things in perspective, Jaffer is the first batsman in the history of Ranji Trophy to have scored 12,000 runs. He registered this record by breaking his former one, i.e. the first batsman to have scored 11,000 runs.
But unfortunately for Mumbai, he now leads the batting attack for Vidarbha. The veteran batsman from Mumbai shifted to Vidarbha during the 2015/16 Ranji Trophy season and just after two seasons, Vidarbha became the Ranji champions in 2018 with Jaffer hitting the winning boundary to win the title for his team.
Before the beginning of the 2019-20 season, Jaffer had 11,775 runs in the Ranji Trophy. But owing to his run-rich form, he became the only batsman in Ranji history to have scored 12,000 runs on February 4, 2020. Earlier in this season, Jaffer had created history by playing his 150th Ranji Trophy match. He now has the most number of appearances in the tournament.
This cricketer made his first-class debut in 1996-97 and as he played cricket, he emerged as one of the legends in the respective circuit. His brilliant run in the domestic tournament also earned him a spot in the Indian national squad.
Ever since his debut, he has broken multiple records and set new ones. Playing for India, Jaffer featured in 31 Tests and scored 1,944 runs at an average of 34.10. This includes five centuries and 11 half-centuries that he had notched during his time as a national player.
However, despite having the statistics in his favour, one can only wonder why Mumbai could not hold on to the legend.
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