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Jalaj Saxena: The Domestic Cricket Legend Making History in Ranji Trophy’s 90-Year Legacy
In the fourth round of the Ranji Trophy match against Uttar Pradesh, veteran cricketer Jalaj Saxena has achieved a historic feat.
The all-rounder excelled once again with the ball, taking five wickets against Uttar Pradesh, marking the 29th time he has taken a five-wicket haul in the Ranji Trophy.
By taking the wicket of Nitish Rana, Saxena reached the milestone of 400 wickets in his Ranji career. This achievement makes the 37-year-old the first player in Ranji Trophy history to surpass both 6,000 runs and 400 wickets.
Saxena crossed the 6,000-run milestone during the third round of the Ranji Trophy in a match against Kolkata.
His statistics reflect his long-standing consistency and impact in domestic cricket. Despite an illustrious domestic career spanning nearly two decades, Saxena has never had the opportunity to represent the national team, a surprising fact given his exceptional performance.
Jalaj Saxena began his first-class career 18 years ago, initially representing Madhya Pradesh, for whom he played 11 years, securing 159 wickets and scoring 4,041 runs. In 2016-17, he transferred to the Kerala team, where he continued to excel without looking back.
Across all formats of domestic cricket, including the Ranji Trophy, Saxena has accumulated a remarkable 9,000 runs and 600 wickets, making him only the fourth player to reach this level of achievement.
In his 222 first-class matches, Saxena has scored 14 centuries and 33 half-centuries, with a batting average of 33.97.
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