Ranji Trophy Winners List From 1934 To 2026

Since 1934, the Ranji Trophy has been India’s top domestic cricket tournament.

Named after Ranjitsinhji, who broke barriers playing for England in the 1890s, this competition has shaped Indian cricket like nothing else.

It’s where legends are made and where teams battle for supremacy in red-ball cricket.

Vidarbha claimed the 2024–25 championship after their final against Kerala ended in a draw.

The first-innings lead gave them the trophy under competition rules.

That marked Vidarbha’s third title and showed they’ve become a genuine powerhouse.

The 2025–26 season is happening now with teams chasing glory and players trying to catch selectors’ eyes.

Ranji Trophy Winners List From 1934 To 2026

All-Time Ranji Trophy Winners And Runners List From 1934 To 2026

Ninety years of competition have created an incredible history. The Ranji Trophy winners list shows which teams dominated, which ones broke through unexpectedly, and which runners-up kept falling short.

Here’s the complete record of every champion and runner-up:

From 1934 To Modern Day Structure

The first season in 1934–35 saw Bombay beat Northern India in the final.

The tournament honored Ranjitsinhji, who’d played Test cricket for England despite being from India.

That pioneering spirit fit perfectly with a competition meant to develop Indian talent.

Early years used a zonal format. Teams competed within the North, West, East, and South zones. Winners advanced to inter-zonal knockouts.

The Central zone joined in 1952–53, expanding the tournament’s footprint across the country. This setup lasted five decades.

Everything changed in 2002–03 when the zones disappeared. A two-tier system took over with Elite and Plate divisions.

Elite teams faced the strongest competition while Plate teams got development opportunities.

Today, 38 teams compete under this structure, making it one of the world’s biggest domestic tournaments.

Mumbai’s Staggering Championship Record

Mumbai has won 42 Ranji Trophy titles. Forty-two. Karnataka sits in second place with 8 wins. Delhi has 7.

The gap between first and second place is bigger than the gap between second and last. That’s not just success. That’s total domination spanning generations.

Look at the period from 1958–59 through 1972–73. Mumbai won every single championship for 15 straight years.

Rajasthan kept making finals and kept losing to the same team. Six finals, six losses, all against Mumbai. The mental scars from that kind of consistent defeat must’ve run deep.

Mumbai’s success came from infrastructure and culture. They had better facilities, sharper coaching, and a deeper talent pool than anyone else.

Players grew up in a winning system. Young cricketers saw what excellence looked like and knew what it took to maintain it. That knowledge passed from generation to generation.

The New Champions Changing The Game

Recent years have brought fresh names to the winners list. Vidarbha, Saurashtra, and Madhya Pradesh have grabbed titles despite having way less tradition than the old powers.

The playing field’s leveled considerably, making the tournament more unpredictable.

Vidarbha’s three championships (2017–18, 2018–19, 2024–25) show they’ve built something sustainable.

They didn’t get lucky once and disappear. They created a squad with depth and mental strength. When finals arrive and pressure spikes, they handle it better than most teams.

Saurashtra’s wins in 2019–20 and 2022–23 came through sheer toughness. They grind teams down over four days with disciplined cricket.

Nothing fancy, just solid fundamentals executed under pressure. That approach wins titles even against teams with bigger names.

Madhya Pradesh beating Mumbai in 2021–22 shocked the cricket world. A team with zero championship history took down the most decorated side in tournament history.

That result proved the competition was wide open now. Any team with proper preparation can win it all.

Expert Insight: First-Innings Psychology In Finals

Finals create unique mental pressure because of the first-innings lead rule. Teams know a draw doesn’t mean a replay.

Whoever’s ahead after the first innings walks away with the trophy. That knowledge shapes every decision from the toss onward.

The opening two days become crucial. Teams can’t afford conservative cricket. If you bat first and make only 280, you’re vulnerable.

If the opposition makes 400, you’re playing for pride in the second innings. The scoreboard pressure becomes enormous.

Smart captains exploit this. When batting with a 180-run first-innings lead, they’ll take more risks in the second innings.

Why? Because they’ve got buffer. Even if they collapse for 150, the opposition needs to chase 330-plus in the fourth innings.

That freedom changes how batters approach their innings completely.

Teams trailing after the first innings face crushing psychological weight. Every run feels twice as heavy. Bowlers know mistakes cost more.

Batters can’t relax even against average bowling. That pressure separates teams that can handle finals from those that can’t.

How The Current System Works?

League phase matches happen in groups. Elite division teams play within pools designed to balance competition and geography.

Top performers from each group advance to the knockout stages. The system keeps matches competitive while managing travel demands.

Plate division teams compete separately. They play fewer matches but fight for promotion opportunities to Elite status.

This creates a pathway for developing cricket associations to improve their programs without getting crushed by established powers every week.

Knockouts follow traditional brackets. Quarter-finals, semi-finals, then a final. All matches run four full days of first-class cricket.

No shortened formats or gimmicks. Teams win by playing proper red-ball cricket, which is exactly how it should be at this level.

The Factory That Builds India’s Stars

Every Indian cricket legend learned their trade in the Ranji Trophy.

Gavaskar’s technique, Tendulkar’s hunger, Dravid’s discipline, Kohli’s aggression – they all got refined here before going international. The tournament’s talent production record speaks for itself.

Different conditions across India force players to develop complete games. Batting in Chennai requires different skills than batting in Mohali.

Bowlers learn what works where and why. That variety creates well-rounded cricketers who can adapt anywhere in the world.

The pathway still functions today. Sarfaraz Khan scored runs for years in the Ranji Trophy before earning his India chance.

Yashasvi Jaiswal dominated this level and moved up. As long as the tournament maintains its standards, it’ll keep producing international cricketers.

Unforgettable Ranji Trophy Moments

Mumbai’s twin centuries by tail-enders in 2023–24 defied belief. Tanush Kotian and Tushar Deshpande, batting at numbers 10 and 11, both made hundreds in the same innings against Baroda.

That had never happened in first-class cricket history anywhere on the planet. The odds were astronomical, yet they pulled it off.

Baroda and Holkar created an epic rivalry in the late 1940s. Four consecutive finals between 1945–46 and 1949–50.

They traded wins back and forth. Fans circled those finals on their calendars months in advance. The intensity of those matches set standards for what domestic cricket could be.

Bengal’s title drought lasted 51 years between wins. From 1938–39 to 1989–90, they couldn’t get it done.

Multiple generations of fans had never seen Bengal lift the trophy. When they finally beat Delhi in the final, the celebrations lasted weeks. That’s what the tournament means to people.

FAQs

• Who has won the most Ranji Trophy titles?

Mumbai dominates the Ranji Trophy winners list with 42 championships, far ahead of Karnataka’s 8 and Delhi’s 7 titles.

• Who won the most recent Ranji Trophy?

Vidarbha are the latest Ranji Trophy winners, claiming the 2024–25 title by beating Kerala on a first-innings lead.

• When did the Ranji Trophy first start?

The tournament began in the 1934–35 season, with Bombay defeating Northern India to become the first champions.

• What happens if a Ranji Trophy ends in a draw?

The team with the higher first-innings total is declared the winner when finals end as draws.

• Which teams are recent Ranji Trophy winners?

Recent Ranji Trophy winners include Vidarbha (2024–25), Mumbai (2023–24), Saurashtra (2022–23 and 2019–20), Madhya Pradesh (2021–22), and Vidarbha (2018–19 and 2017–18).

Nine Decades Of Championship Cricket

The Ranji Trophy continues as India’s most important domestic competition.

From Mumbai’s historic achievements to recent breakthroughs by teams like Vidarbha, the tournament keeps delivering compelling cricket and developing world-class talent.

Vidarbha’s 2024–25 title came through disciplined play across all four days against Kerala.

The drawn final could’ve gone to either team, but Vidarbha’s first-innings work made the difference.

That’s championship cricket at the domestic level.

The 2025–26 season is creating new stories as we speak.

Players are fighting for recognition while teams chase the glory that defines careers and builds legacies for 90 years.

Another name will join the Ranji Trophy winners list soon, adding to a tradition that remains the foundation of Indian cricket.

Also Check:

• ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Winners List
• Hawke Cup Winners List
• ILT20 Winners List
• Sheffield Shield Winners List