Following an internal meeting way back in 1934, the inaugural season of India’s leading first-class cricket competition – Ranji Trophy – was announced along with the fixtures schedule through the 1934-35 season. And the rest was all history as the same tournament was played every year during the same time, contested among regional teams across India.
The tournament’s earliest game was played on 4 November 1934 between Madras and Mysore (as these teams were known back then), and around 15 teams participated in that initial season of this historic Indian first class tournament. Today, the event is called the IDFC First Bank Ranji Trophy for sponsorship reasons and as many as 38 teams participate in each season now.
Ranji Trophy winners and history
The tournament got its name after Ranjitsinghji who was the first cricketer from India to play international cricket. Since then, the name has always been the same with only one season being cancelled since inception almost a century ago. We’re talking about the 2020-21 Ranji Trophy edition which was called off because of the Covid-19 global pandemic (Check out our Ranji Trophy top run scorers list).
Currently, all 28 states in India have representation in the form of Ranji Trophy teams, along with 4 of the 8 union territories. Since the competition has a very old history, we will today talk about the winners over the years and decades, and which teams/regions have dominated over time. Keep reading for our complete Ranji Trophy winners list from start till date (last updated 18th October 2024)…
SEE ALSO: List of the top online sports betting websites
Complete Ranji Trophy winners list
| Season | Champion | Runner-up | Venue | Man of the Match |
| 1934-35 | Bombay | Northern India | Bombay | NA |
| 1935-36 | Bombay (2) | Madras | Delhi | NA |
| 1936-37 | Nawanagar | Bengal | Bombay | NA |
| 1937-38 | Hyderabad | Nawanagar | Bombay | NA |
| 1938-39 | Bengal | Southern Punjab | Calcutta | NA |
| 1939-40 | Maharashtra | United Provinces | Poona | NA |
| 1940-41 | Maharashtra (2) | Madras | Madras | NA |
| 1941-42 | Bombay (3) | Mysore | Bombay | NA |
| 1942-43 | Baroda | Hyderabad | Secunderabad | NA |
| 1943-44 | Western India | Bengal | Bombay | NA |
| 1944-45 | Bombay (4) | Holkar | Bombay | NA |
| 1945-46 | Holkar | Baroda | Indore | NA |
| 1946-47 | Baroda (2) | Holkar | Baroda | NA |
| 1947-48 | Holkar (2) | Bombay | Indore | NA |
| 1948-49 | Bombay (5) | Baroda | Bombay | NA |
| 1949-50 | Baroda (3) | Holkar | Baroda | NA |
| 1950-51 | Holkar (3) | Gujarat | Indore | NA |
| 1951-52 | Bombay (6) | Holkar | Bombay | NA |
| 1952-53 | Holkar (4) | Bengal | Calcutta | NA |
| 1953-54 | Bombay (7) | Holkar | Indore | NA |
| 1954-55 | Madras | Holkar | Indore | NA |
| 1955-56 | Bombay (8) | Bengal | Calcutta | NA |
| 1956-57 | Bombay (9) | Services | Bombay | NA |
| 1957-58 | Baroda (4) | Services | Baroda | NA |
| 1958-59 | Bombay (10) | Bengal | Bombay | NA |
| 1959-60 | Bombay (11) | Mysore | Bombay | NA |
| 1960-61 | Bombay (12) | Rajasthan | Udaipur | NA |
| 1961-62 | Bombay (13) | Rajasthan | Bombay | NA |
| 1962-63 | Bombay (14) | Rajasthan | Jaipur | NA |
| 1963-64 | Bombay (15) | Rajasthan | Bombay | NA |
| 1964-65 | Bombay (16) | Hyderabad | Hyderabad | NA |
| 1965-66 | Bombay (17) | Rajasthan | Jaipur | NA |
| 1966-67 | Bombay (18) | Rajasthan | Bombay | NA |
| 1967-68 | Bombay (19) | Madras | Bombay | NA |
| 1968-69 | Bombay (20) | Bengal | Bombay | NA |
| 1969-70 | Bombay (21) | Rajasthan | Bombay | NA |
| 1970-71 | Bombay (22) | Maharashtra | Bombay | NA |
| 1971-72 | Bombay (23) | Bengal | Bombay | NA |
| 1972-73 | Bombay (24) | Tamil Nadu | Madras | NA |
Talking about the most successful sides in the history of the competition till date, no one has tasted more success than Bombay/Mumbai. We all know that the city was known as Bombay earlier but regardless of a name change or not, the team has made as many as 48 Ranji Trophy finals appearances.
And not only have they made finals but they’ve won a lot of finals too, winning on 42 occasions before the Ranji Trophy 2022 final against Madhya Pradesh. They lost six of their finals over the years and they are second on the list of most domestic first class titles across the world, following the New South Wales regional team in Australia.
SEE ALSO: List of best fantasy sports websites in India
Since Ranji Trophy inception until the 2001/02 season (except the 1948-49 season), the teams were grouped into four or five zones including North, South, East, West, and Central (latter added in 1952-53). Then in 2002/03, the format changed with the teams being placed into two zones – Elite Group (15 teams) and the Plate Group (rest of the teams).
Initially, the tournament was also played in a knockout format within zones itself, before shifting to the league format from the 1957/58 season onwards. In terms of longest winning streaks, Bombay dominated the competition for fifteen seasons in a row, winning every Ranji Trophy title from 1958/59 to 1972/73, and that team will always be remembered as the most flawless among all Ranji Trophy winners.
Ranji Trophy all winners list
| Season | Champion | Runner-up | Venue | Man of the Match |
| 1973-74 | Karnataka | Rajasthan | Jaipur | NA |
| 1974-75 | Bombay (25) | Karnataka | Bombay | NA |
| 1975-76 | Bombay (26) | Bihar | Jamshedpur | NA |
| 1976-77 | Bombay (27) | Delhi | Delhi | NA |
| 1977-78 | Karnataka (2) | Uttar Pradesh | Uttar Pradesh | NA |
| 1978-79 | Delhi | Karnataka | Bangalore | NA |
| 1979-80 | Delhi (2) | Bombay | Delhi | NA |
| 1980-81 | Bombay (28) | Delhi | Bombay | NA |
| 1981-82 | Delhi (3) | Karnataka | Delhi | NA |
| 1982-83 | Karnataka (3) | Bombay | Bombay | NA |
| 1983-84 | Bombay (29) | Delhi | Bombay | NA |
| 1984-85 | Bombay (30) | Delhi | Bombay | NA |
| 1985-86 | Delhi (4) | Haryana | Delhi | NA |
| 1986-87 | Hyderabad (2) | Delhi | Delhi | NA |
| 1987-88 | Tamil Nadu (2) | Railways | Madras | NA |
| 1988-89 | Delhi (5) | Bengal | Delhi | NA |
| 1989-90 | Bengal (2) | Delhi | Calcutta | NA |
| 1990-91 | Haryana | Bombay | Bombay | NA |
| 1991-92 | Delhi (6) | Tamil Nadu | Delhi | NA |
| 1992-93 | Punjab | Maharashtra | Ludhiana | NA |
| 1993-94 | Bombay (31) | Bengal | Bombay | NA |
| 1994-95 | Bombay (32) | Punjab | Bombay | NA |
| 1995-96 | Karnataka (4) | Tamil Nadu | Madras | NA |
| 1996-97 | Mumbai (33) | Delhi | Gwalior | NA |
| 1997-98 | Karnataka (5) | Uttar Pradesh | Bangalore | Rahul Dravid |
| 1998-99 | Karnataka (6) | Madhya Pradesh | Bangalore | Vijay Bharadwaj |
| 1999-00 | Mumbai (34) | Hyderabad | Mumbai | NA |
| 2000-01 | Baroda (5) | Railways | Vadodara | Zaheer Khan |
| 2001-02 | Railways | Baroda | Delhi | NA |
| 2002-03 | Mumbai (35) | Tamil Nadu | Mumbai | NA |
| 2003-04 | Mumbai (36) | Tamil Nadu | Chennai | NA |
| 2004-05 | Railways (2) | Punjab | Mohali | NA |
| 2005-06 | Uttar Pradesh | Bengal | Lucknow | NA |
| 2006-07 | Mumbai (37) | Bengal | Mumbai | NA |
| 2007-08 | Delhi (7) | Uttar Pradesh | Mumbai | NA |
| 2008-09 | Mumbai (38) | Uttar Pradesh | Hyderabad | NA |
| 2009-10 | Mumbai (39) | Karnataka | Mysore | NA |
| 2010-11 | Rajasthan | Baroda | Vadodara | Rashmi Parida |
| 2011-12 | Rajasthan (2) | Tamil Nadu | Chennai | Vineet Saxena |
| 2012-13 | Mumbai (40) | Saurashtra | Mumbai | Wasim Jaffer |
| 2013-14 | Karnataka (7) | Maharashtra | Hyderabad | KL Rahul |
| 2014-15 | Karnataka (8) | Tamil Nadu | Mumbai | Karun Nair |
| 2015-16 | Mumbai (41) | Saurashtra | Pune | Shreyas Iyer |
| 2016-17 | Gujarat | Mumbai | Indore | Parthiv Patel |
| 2017-18 | Vidarbha | Delhi | Indore | Rajneesh Gurbani |
| 2018-19 | Vidarbha (2) | Saurashtra | Nagpur | Aditya Sarwate |
| 2019-20 | Saurashtra | Bengal | Rajkot | Arpit Vasavada |
| 2020-21 | CANCELLED | NA | NA | NA |
| 2021-22 | Madhya Pradesh | Mumbai | Bengaluru | Shubham Sharma |
| 2022-23 | Saurashtra (2) | Bengal | Kolkata | Jaydev Unadkat |
| 2023-24 | Mumbai (42) | Vidarbha | Mumbai | Musheer Khan – 136, 6 & 2/48 |
| 2024-25 | TBD | TBD | TBD | TBD |
The Ranji Trophy 2022 final was a brilliant and historic one for many reasons. Firstly, Madhya Pradesh went on to win their maiden Ranji Trophy title, beating a champion team like Mumbai in the final. Prior to this, MP had only made one final back in 1998/99, which they lost to Karnataka. a couple of years later, Mumbai won their 42nd title in the 2023-24 Ranji Trophy, beating Vidarbha in the final:
HUNDRED IN RANJI TROPHY FINAL….!!!!
– Musheer Khan is just 19 years old. 🤯🔥pic.twitter.com/2xfxleYI9R
— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) March 12, 2024
FAQs
Q. Who won the most Ranji Trophy?
Ans. Mumbai (Earlier called Bombay) is the most successful side in the Ranji Trophy history, with as many as 42 titles to their name. They’ve reached the Ranji Trophy finals on 48 occasions, finishing on the losing side on 6 occasions.
Q. Who was the first winner of the Ranji Trophy?
Ans. Ranji Trophy 1934-35 was the first ever edition of the competition, where Bombay emerged winners after beating Northern India. Bombay won the second edition of the tournament as well.
Q. How many times has Karnataka won Ranji?
Ans. As of October 2024, Karnataka is the second most successful team in Ranji history, after Mumbai’s 42 titles. Karnataka has lifted the title on 8 (eight) occasions over the years, the last time being Ranji Trophy 2014-15.
For more updates from this Ranji Trophy all winners list as well as generic updates from this tournament and other cricketing tournaments from around the world, stay tuned to ReadScoops.com.
Register to 1Win India to get a 100% first deposit bonus
