Features

Marais Erasmus will become probably the first overseas umpire to officiate in Indian domestic cricket, starting with the Duleep Trophy game in Mumbai. Nagraj Gollapudi met him

The two bowlers who impressed most during the Duleep Trophy were virtual unknowns from India's cricketing backwaters: Andhra legspinner M Suresh and Vidarbha fast bowler Umesh Yadav

Rahul Dravid played the sort of knock that made him the world's most bankable batsman a few years ago, displaying the confidence, ease and solidity that were once second nature to him

Sreesanth's first bowling stint in the spotlight since last year's IPL was a typically entertaining mix of the sublime and the surreal

Karthik's 113-ball 153 at the Chinnaswamy Stadium that bumped Central Zone from being front-runners to playing catch-up; from 86 for 6, South Zone rocketed along to a more-than-acceptable 290 for 8 by the time he was dismissed

Sriram Veera watches the Ranji Trophy final come to end, from up close

Praveen Amre never won the Ranji Trophy as a player, but in his three years as Mumbai's coach he has won the Ranji title twice. He shares Mumbai's journey to their 38th Ranji crown

Wicketkeeper Vinayak Samant, pushed into opening by Amre in the final league game, scored his maiden ton to allow Mumbai have a firm grasp on their 38th title

Great debut season. Heartbreaking injury. Loss of form. But Sudeep Tyagi did enough in his first season of first-class cricket to merit a central contract, and to be retained by Chennai Super Kings

What is the BCCI doing to raise the level of umpiring in the country?

A lively pitch for the final was a pleasant sight when you consider that complete batting beauties were served up for the semi-finals

Suresh Raina looks back at his worst year, 2007, as a blessing in disguise

Indian cricket's next big thing seems to be a 20-year-old from Rajkot determined to break the selectors' door down by producing triple-hundreds on demand

The story of Shivakant Shukla, who batted for821 minutes to take Uttar Pradesh through to the final of the Ranji Trophy, embodies Uttar Pradesh cricket

Who is Pritam Gandhe? To people who follow domestic cricket - especially the Plate League - through scorecards (there's no other way really), he is a Vidarbha offspinner who is one of only three bowlers to have taken more than one hat-trick in the Ranji T

Ajinkya Rahane needs 24 runs to reach the 1000-run mark for the season

One of the more endearing sights in Indian cricket is back. To see L Balaji smiling on a cricket field, after a painful two-year hiatus, is reassuring

Used to striking before the batsmen have even warmed up, he became Mumbai's best bowler before his 20th birthday

Highlights of the seventh round of the Ranji Trophy's Super League and Plate matches

The selection of players from domestic cricket for contracts doesn't follow any trend, and has some glaring omissions and inclusions