Assam withdrew their appeal during the tea break immediately following the dismissal, and the umpires accepted the decision.
Mumbai captain Ajinkya Rahane was given out for obstructing the field for the first time in his 16-year professional career. He was later reinstated to bat after opponents Assam withdrew their appeal in the final Ranji Trophy league match at the Sharad Pawar Cricket Academy in Mumbai.
Rahane was on 18 runs with Mumbai at 102 for 4 in the last over before the scheduled tea break. He drove his 52nd delivery from Assam fast bowler and debutant Dibakar Johri to mid-on and attempted a single. Batting partner Shivam Dube denied the single and sent Rahane back, but Assam captain Denish Das fired a throw to the keeper's end, hitting Rahane as he tried to return to the crease.
Rahane was given out by the on-field umpire off the fourth ball of the 25th over after the Assam players appealed for "obstructing the field". Tea was called two balls early with Mumbai 102 for 5 in reply to Assam's 84 all out.
During the tea break, Assam decided to withdraw and informed the umpires. According to the laws, an appeal for dismissal must be withdrawn before the next ball is bowled and must be accepted by the umpires for the batter to be recalled. Fortunately for Rahane, he was dismissed before play resumed and both teams returned to their pavilions. The umpires accepted the withdrawal of the appeal, and Rahane resumed batting about 20 minutes later.
Shardul Thakur later stated that Rahane was hesitant to bat again because of his ethical beliefs. However, Thakur also explained what he observed on the replays in the dressing room, which could have resulted in the appeal being withdrawn.
Thakur said, they reviewed the video in the dressing room and observed that Rahane turned and ran in a straight line. He did not change his direction at any point. The batsman only changed direction once, when he took a turn. After that, he did not alter his course while keeping his eyes on the ball. He did not intend to obstruct the field, although the umpires considered giving him out since the throw was aimed at the stumps. However, the Assam coach reviewed the video and did not believe that Rahane had deliberately obstructed the throw.
Thakur insisted that Rahane had not changed direction while running because, according to the MCC's Law 37.1, a batsman is out for obstructing the field if, except in the circumstances of 37.2 and while the ball is in play, he deliberately attempts to obstruct or distract the fielding side by word or act. However, Law 37.2 goes on to state that a batter shall not be out obstructing the field if the obstruction or distraction is accidental, or the obstruction is in order to avoid injury.
Thakur stated that during the tea break, Assam coach Trevor Gonsalves approached the Mumbai dressing room to apologize for the appeal and requested Rahane to resume batting after the break.
He expressed regret for the appeal, which was made in the heat of the moment, and stated that they wished to withdraw it. He conveyed the same message to the umpires, and they agreed that Rahane would resume batting.
Rahane returned to the crease with Dube, but was unable to capitalise on his good fortune. He was bowled by the same bowler four overs after tea. He faced only 17 more deliveries and was eventually dismissed for 22 off 69 balls.
Rahane had earlier hit three fours in his innings - two through the covers and one wide of mid-on. He and Dube helped revive Mumbai's innings after they had reached 60 for 4 in the 16th over. Their partnership was worth 50 runs off 77 deliveries, with Rahane contributing 16 runs, Dube contributing 30 runs, and four extras.
Despite an unimpressive Ranji season, with just 112 runs from eight innings at an average of 16.00, Rahane played a crucial role in this match. He had missed two league games due to injuries, but returned to the team under the captaincy of Shams Mulani against Bihar and under Dube against Bengal.
Assam were bowled out in 32.1 overs. Shardul Thakur, who returned from injury, took 6 wickets for 21 runs in 10.1 overs. Mumbai chose to bowl.
This was Thakur's first five-wicket haul in first-class cricket in two years. He was playing only his second Ranji game of the season after recovering from an ankle injury that had kept him out of action for a few weeks. He stated that he had fully recovered and was prepared to bowl as many overs as needed in a day.
His strategy was to bowl in the right areas and aim to take four to five wickets before lunch. While the goal was not necessarily to take all 10 wickets, the objective was to take as many wickets as possible. Taking five wickets in a session would be considered a great achievement. Shams also contributed with two wickets after his spell. The last three or four wickets were a bonus.
Mumbai is currently leading Group B with 30 points from six games, including four wins, one draw, and one loss, and has already qualified for the quarter-finals.