Stumps Kerala 342 (Baby 98, Sarwate 79, Nalkande 3-52, Rekhade 3-65, Dubey 3-88) trail Vidarbha 379 (Malewar 153, Nair 86, Nidheesh 3-61, Apple Tom 3-102) by 37 runs

A thrilling third day's play of the Ranji Trophy final took a potentially decisive turn late in the third session, when Sachin Baby, who was a symbol of concentration and grit all day to construct 234-ball 98, fell with Kerala 56 away from a first-innings lead. That opened the floodgates for hosts Vidarbha to barge the door down, by picking up the three remaining wickets quickly to take a 37-run lead by stumps.

Harsh Dubey and Parth Rekhade, the left-arm spin twins, picked up six wickets between them as Kerala saw the lead snatched from under their rug in eerily similar circumstances to what they did to Gujarat only a week earlier. Dubey ended with 3 for 88 across 44 overs, to surpass Ashutosh Aman's tally for most wickets in a single Ranji season. He's now on top of the list with 69 wickets.

The big moment came 30 minutes into the final session when Rekhade danged a carrot with Baby approaching three figures in his 100th first-class game. With mid-on in, Baby looked to launch him over the infield but ended up dragging it to Karun Nair at the deep midwicket boundary. Baby took an eternity to walk off and couldn't believe what he'd done. In that moment, it felt as if Kerala's hopes hinged on a lead that eventually was taken away from them when the lower order was snuffed out.

Jalaj Saxena, Kerala's last hope, soldiered on for 76 deliveries to make 28 before an attempted paddle off Rekhade had him miss the ball as it crashed into the stumps. Kerala still needed 43, but there was a sense that the end was nigh. Saxena's wicket was massive, for he was looking completely at ease against the turning ball that occasionally spat on the batters with a few spots from the rough areas of both ends making it difficult for the batters.

Like it has on many occasions, the prelude to Saxena's wicket was a lengthy recovery break when Yash Rathod fell flat on the ground with cramps and needed treatment from the physio before play resumed. It was almost as if that break forced a slight lapse in concentration from Saxena as he attempted to paddle one from outside off, having played that stroke a number of times during his innings to deliveries drifting into the pads.

Once Saxena fell, Kerala folded with 19-year-old Eden Apple Tom, playing in only his third Ranji game and his first in nearly three years, bowled attempting a sweep after he'd blunted the bowling for a better part of the last 45 minutes. The last hour undid all the hard work Baby did in being able to have Kerala dare to dream of a lead, but he'll know with two full days left and two quality spinners in his ranks, Kerala's ability to bounce back will depend on how quickly they're able to lift themselves from the pall of gloom that seemed to have set into the dressing room when their final wicket fell.

The nature of Kerala's collapse in the end was dramatic and won't tell you how well the batters had done to give them sight of a lead in the first place. Local boy and two-time Ranji winner with Vidarbha, Aditya Sarwate, led the way with 79, and was the first to fall on the third day when he was prised out by Dubey, who quickly changed his approach from trying to bowl full and flat to looping it into the batters and having them jab at deliveries.

Once such delivery that jumped at Sarwate lobbed off the bat to Danish Malewar at silly point just a few minutes after he'd reprieved him by putting down a low catch at gully. That wicket forced Vidarbha to go on an attack, as Baby, who overturned an lbw through DRS on 54, opened up to play some wonderful shots - the secret to his runs early on lay in how late he played the ball and how disciplined he was outside off.

Mohammed Azharuddeen took much pressure off Baby as he late cut the spinners well to keep picking runs and bring the deficit close to double digits when Vidarbha's decision to take the second new ball midway through the 93rd over immediately paid dividends. Off the very first ball of the 94th, Azharuddeen was trapped lbw by Darshan Nalkande's in-ducker that beat his inside edge.

Saxena then showed some intent up front by hitting two boundaries off his first five deliveries, before he buckled down in Baby's company. The pair added 46 when Baby's hoick - what would best be described a brain fade - changed the complexion of the innings, and possibly the match itself.