Thakur removed B Anirudh, Sumit Kumar and Jaskirat for ducks off the last three deliveries of the over to record his maiden First-Class hat-trick. The 33-year-old is coming off a blistering hundred for Mumbai in the previous match that the defending champions lost to J&K at the same ground last week, putting their chances of a knockout spot on the brink.

Thakur is the fifth Mumbai/Bombay bowler to bag a hat-trick in the Ranji Trophy and the first since Royston Dias claimed the feat in 2023-24. In seven matches thus far this season, Thakur has registered 20 wickets and 297 runs with a century and two fifties.

Placed third in Group A, Mumbai will require to win the ongoing match by an innings or 10 wickets to secure the bonus point. That will tie them with J&K (29 points) with Baroda placed second at (27 points). Mumbai will then hope that either J&K or Baroda will not gain more than one point from the last-round match between the sides in Vadodara. Speaking on the eve of the game, Thakur had expressed his hope of Mumbai’s qualification chances.

“Longer format is an emotional roller coaster ride, one session can take the game away. The player who has observed must have learned from it. Be humble and be respectful, I don’t take anything or anyone lightly. The message from the coach and captain is simple. We need to stick together and play together as a team,” Thakur said.

Mumbai (Bombay) bowlers with Ranji Trophy hat-tricks

Jehangir Khot – Bombay v Baroda – Brabourne Stadium, Bombay, 1943/44
Umesh Kulkarni – Bombay v Gujarat – Shastri Maidan, Anand, 1963/64
AM Ismail – Bombay v Saurashtra – Brabourne Stadium, Bombay, 1973/74
Royston Dias – Mumbai v Bihar – Moin-ul-Haq Stadium, Patna, 2023/24
Shardul Thakur – Mumbai v Meghalaya – BKC Ground, Mumbai, 2024/25