The triumphant Saurashtra skipper Jaydev Unadkat was awestruck after witnessing the rapturous welcome at the Rajkot airport after winning the Ranji Trophy 2022-2023 on Monday (February 20). In the leadership of Unadkat, Saurashtra rocked Manoj-Tiwary's Bengal by nine-wickets in the final to lift their second Ranji Trophy crown on Sunday.
A mob of fans thronged the Rajkot airport in huge numbers to welcome Saurashtra heroes and have a glimpse of their favourite starts following which Unadkat took to Twitter and posted a video and wrote," Incredible scenes at the Rajkot airport today when we landed. This is something I have never witnessed before. There was spark. There was excitement. There was a sense of the bright future of cricket in Saurashtra! Well done guys! Let’s keep the fire burning."
Here's the video…
Soon after Unadkat's tweet, India's explosive batter Suryakumar Yadav wrote,"Trust me I have never seen so much rush at the RAJKOT airport buddy. You all have earned this love from all the people present. Great sight."
For his magnificent show with the ball, Unadkat was declared Player of the Match as he snared nine wickets in the summit clash, which included a six-fer in the second innings. Meanwhile, Arpit Vasavada was adjudged the Player of the Series as he amassed 907 runs in 10 games riding on three centuries.
Jaydev impressive show also helped him retain his place in India's Test squad for the remainder of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. He was earlier released to by India's squad to play the Ranji Trophy final. Not just this, he has also been added in India's squad for the ODI series against Australia which will be played from March 17. He last featured for the Men in Blue in ODIs against West Indies back in 2013.
Following the win, the 31-year-old showed a warm gesture dedicating the trophy to Cheteshwar Pujara. Speaking to Espncricinfo he said, “As I said before, it’s a fitting tribute to one of Saurashtra’s favourite sons, Chintu (Cheteshwar Pujara).”
The Saurashtra skipper further spoke about the importance of winning the Ranji Trophy. He said, “Three trophies in three years prove that we have been doing a lot of things right. We have set a tone. I’m really proud of what this team has achieved. It’s not just about winning trophies but creating a legacy for our team, which will leave a bigger impact on cricket in the region.”
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