Back as coach, Chandrakant Pandit does what he is best at

Mumbai chairman of selectors Milind Rege proudly held the Ranji Trophy and said, "this is the result of 10 months of hard work under Chandu (coach Chandrakant Pandit)."

Rege has been doubling up as team mentor for the season. But he said: "With Chandu in the team, you don't need a mentor."

Pandit deserves as much credit for Mumbai lifting the title as the players. The former India stumper has guided Mumbai to title triumphs twice in his first stint as coach in the early 2000s. And, in his first season on return, he did what he is best known to.

"When you come back and win whether as a player or as a coach, it doesn't matter. Winning is entirely a different feeling. The way the bunch has played throughout the season, it was outstanding. They responded well. Of course, there was a time we had to bounce back. We never lost our confidence. Aditya Tare also controlled the team well. We always gelled as a team. We worked for the process and ultimately, we are standing here (victorious)," Pandit said.

Having been a part of the victorious Mumbai teams as a player and coach, Pandit said it was easy to coach the current lot.

"It's easy for me to get them on the same platform. They're just following instructions, they're accepting, they're responding. That makes it easy for the coach. When there are different kinds of characters, it becomes difficult. That is the best thing about them."

Elaborating on it, Pandit said: "They had faith in each other. When they entered the field, they knew what had to be done. It was the same age group, with same experience and they wanted to stay together as a family. They've taken initiatives in every game, it's not that only Iyer, or Dhawal or Nayar took the initiative. They've all shown character and that could be seen on the field."

Pandit lavished praise on Iyer: "Looking at his runs and his consistency, he's given a big boost to the team. We knew that when he was at the crease, the run rate would never be a problem. We were only hoping that he would continue at the crease. And he's been doing that," he said.

Pandit also thanked former Mumbai Test captains for their constant support during the season.

"There has been support from a lot of cricketers – Sunil Gavaskar, Sachin Tendulkar, Dilip Vengsarkar – they have been in constant touch. I must specially thank Sachin, he's always been there to help. He has visited the ground so many times to help every individual.

"Also, the chairman of the selection committee Milind Rege never said no to whatever bunch we wanted. I would definitely thank the boys because they have to go the way I've been guiding."

Though Mumbai began on a sour note, conceding the first innings lead in a drawn encounter against Andhra, Pandit said the team always had the belief.

"Basically, Mumbai team is expected to win. We believe that beginning is very important. We were very close, but that never put us down. That was the only shock for us this season. The team said 'we definitely have to go all out with our planning'. We spent lot of time. Probably, they must have not liked it, but I had to do a lot of talking and planning. I'm very happy that they've stuck to the plan," Pandit said.

He could not single out his best Ranji wins. "This is one of the best. There have been so many wins. One of the best wins for me was when we beat Delhi at the Wankhede with Ravi Shastri taking 8/91 in the second innings in 1984-85," Pandit said.

For many in the team, this was their maiden final, with only five in the XI having played a final before. "For them I'm sure it's the best win. The entire season has been the best. If you look at every player, you will say he has done something in that game," Pandit said.

No doubt, this has been a team effort for Mumbai.