Ageless Wasim Jaffer top scored for Vidarbha as they went on to retain the Ranji Trophy title on Thursday (PTI Photo)

It was all but over for Wasim Jaffer, one of the greatest servants of Indian cricket when he suffered a knee injury during the 2016-17 season. He had missed quite a lot of domestic cricket and when he returned from the injury, not many were willing to give the then 38-year-old an opportunity to represent their state.

Jaffer had revealed that his employers Indian Oil felt there was not much cricket left in him and suggested he sit in the office and do the mundane desk work. However, Jaffer got an opportunity to play for Vidarbha, whom he had joined for the first time in the 2015-16 season after leaving Mumbai for whom he played for 18 years and won eight titles.

Cut to February 2019, Jaffer was holding the Ranji Trophy for the 10th time in his career and the second straight time with Vidarbha. The 40-year-old batsman was one of Vidarbha's key campaigners in their successful title defense in the recently-completed 2018-19 season. Jaffer has now won 10 Ranji Trophy titles in as many finals he has played in the country's premier domestic tournament.

Jaffer did not fire in the final against Saurashtra as he was dismissed for 23 and 11 in Vidarbha's 78-run win but the veteran finished as the highest run-scorer for the eventual title winners.

Vidarbha defeat Saurashtra by 78 runs in the Ranji Trophy final



Lift back-to-back Ranji Trophy titles pic.twitter.com/km0LASmN4S BCCI Domestic (@BCCIdomestic) February 7, 2019

Jaffer ended up with 1037 runs at an average of 69.13 from 11 matches. He scored four centuries and the 206 he had scored in the quarter-final against Uttarakhand sealed a semi-final berth for Vidarbha. Jaffer became the first batsman to score 1000 runs in a Ranji Trophy season twice.

The 40-year-old Jaffer had scored 1260 runs from 16 innings at an average of 84 for Mumbai in 2008-09.

An elated Jaffer conceded that he never thought he would another Ranji Trophy final when he left Mumbai in 2018 and thanked Vidarbha's coach and former India cricketer Chandrakant Pandit for trusting him.

"Didn't think I would play another Ranji Trophy final when I left Mumbai. Two in two is unbelievable. When I came back from injury, Chandrakant Pandit became the coach and brought me in. I don't want to let it go. Playing in a winning team motivates you," Jaffer was quoted as saying by ESPNCricinfo after the Ranji Trophy win on Thursday.

Vidarbha rode on 29-year-old left-arm spinner, Aditya Sarwate's maiden 11-wicket haul to outclass Saurashtra. Sarwate dismissed India's star Test batsman Cheteshwar Pujara in both the innings cheaply (1 and 0) in the final to set up his team's historic win.

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