India, March 1 -- This story dates back to the '90s, when the Ranji Trophy was played in a zonal format till the knockout rounds. Every big gun knew just who would be the target of their "annual run fest". For Bengal, it used to be Tripura in the East Zone. Down south, Tamil Nadu and Karnataka would thrash Goa for fun.

Up north, the Delhi legends would eye the game against Jammu and Kashmir to prop up their seasonal numbers.

A former Delhi captain, who also went on to play Tests and ODIs for India, narrated this funny anecdote. "It was my first season in first-class cricket and we had just opted to bat against J&K. Now, normally batters till No.5 pad up at the start of the day. I remember that our No.5, who was a domestic run machine, w...