Siddhesh Lad’s run of scores continued on Day Two of Mumbai’s Ranji Trophy match against Delhi at the MCA ground in Bandra-Kurla Complex, with the Mumbai captain equalling a long-standing record held by Rusi Modi and Sachin Tendulkar.Lad scored an unbeaten 102 off 170 balls, with 12 fours, to register his fifth century of the season. With this, he became only the third Mumbai batter to score five hundreds in a single Ranji Trophy edition. The 33-year-old has now scored 736 runs in seven matches at an average of 105.14 and is the fourth-highest run-getter in the tournament. This is also his fourth century in succession.
The timing of Lad’s form is significant, coming after a phase when he had considered stepping away from the game. Lad, who played for Goa in the 2022-23 season before returning to Mumbai, had admitted during the 2024-25 season that he had thought about retirement due to a lack of motivation. That season, however, ended with him finishing as Mumbai’s top run-scorer, with 602 runs in seven matches at an average of 60.20, including two centuries and two half-centuries.On Friday, Siddhesh’s father-cum coach Dinesh Lad, who also coached Indian captain Rohit Sharma and allrounder Shardul Thakur in their childhood, revealed that his son came close to quitting the game before the season began last year too, before his family counselled him out of that decision. “He was a bit frustrated and wanted to quit cricket, and he wasn’t sure of getting a chance to play for India. However, his mother, wife (Hiral) and I explained to me that ‘You’ achieved what you have because of cricket. We feel that you must keep playing.’ He agreed with us to continue playing for this season,” Dinesh told TOI. “Ajinkya Naik (MCA president) also supported him a lot. He also goaded him to play on. Ajinkya told me that Sidhesh will hit six centuries this season, and today he messaged me: ‘Sir, I told you so.’ Ajinkya had that kind of confidence in him,” said the coach. “He’s batting positively and has worked hard on his fitness and on his game. The head coach (Omkar Salvi) and the selectors have supported him fully. Making him the captain has boosted his confidence. Looking at his supreme form, he should now be considered for India selection,” Dinesh Lad said. Siddhesh, meanwhile, confessed that this is the peak of his batting during his entire career so far, attributing his rich streak to his wealth of experience. “I think so, because now I feel I know my game. (Now I know) When to score runs, what to do. The maturity that a batsman gets after 30, I am experiencing that now. How to score runs, when to score runs, in which situation to score runs,” Lad told reporters.For a major part of his career, especially early on, Lad, known as the ‘Crisis Man’ of the Mumbai cricket team, would fail to convert his half-centuries into hundreds, something that’s a must to bring yourself into the selectors’ notice. However, since he has returned ‘home’ to Mumbai, for the last two seasons, one has witnessed a different Lad – someone who possesses an insatiable hunger for runs. “Before, I used to do 50s and 70s. If you see my half centuries, I have around 30 in first-class cricket. But I struggled to convert. Now I am playing with a different maturity,” said the senior batter. Expressing his gratitude to the Mumbai Cricket Association for backing him, Lad said, “The MCA showed faith in me. The MCA president supported me when I came back to Mumbai at the age of 32. Very few players have come back after migrating to other states. So, the way he welcomed and showed faith in me, it doubled my motivation. If they are showing such faith, I have to do something for Mumbai.”Asked if he was hoping for a maiden India call-up sometime this year, Lad said he does not look too far ahead in life now. “It has always been my ultimate goal to play for the country. But right now, I am just trying to do my job. My first goal is to win the Ranji Trophy over Mumbai, since I have come back from some other state and MCA has shown faith in me.” Speaking about growing up as the son of a well-known coach, Lad said he never felt burdened by it. “It was always a privilege for me. I see it that way. Dad never personally pressurised me, even though the people outside wanted to see it. When I was coming back to Mumbai, I didn’t know if I should continue playing cricket or not. It was (my) dad’s passion and he said ‘you still have a lot of cricket left in you’,” he said.Lad raises concern over dust, pollution at BKC venue Meanwhile, Lad admitted that the dust and pollution at the MCA ground in BKC due to an under-construction building nearby was a serious concern, especially as the Mumbai team was supposed to play their knockout matches-starting with the quarterfinal from Feb 6- at the venue. Quite a few Mumbai players had work masks on Thursday while fielding. Lad said, “We did talk to the team management about this. There was a lot of discussion about it. It was getting bigger and bigger. We’ll be playing here next week. So, it’s very crucial to get rid of this thing. A lot of people are having a hard time. So, it’s important to address this.”
