A formal announcement to begin with: Mumbai are now officially out of this season's Ranji Trophy.
What seemed palpable after the opening two days of their Super League Group 'A' tie against Saurashtra became official on Friday with Delhi scoring a comfortable eight-wicket win over Tamil Nadu in Chennai.
Delhi's win ensured they topped the group with 23 points after three outright wins and four draws.
Saurashtra also had similar number of points and outright wins, but finished second as they had an inferior run quotient (0.955 to Delhi's 1. 510).
With Delhi winning early on, the match at the Wankhede Stadium became a mere formality and sans any significance. A first innings lead for the defending champions, though only a matter of prestige - three points would have ensured at least similar points as the visitors - was the only thing to play for, if at all.
And Mumbai failed to get that as well - their innings folding up at 463, 21 runs short of the Saurashtra total. The match was called off before the mandatory overs.
However, to give credit where it is due, the defending champions started the final day by stepping up the gas, as opposed to their snail pace a day earlier. Resuming at 187/2, Mumbai scored 120 runs without any loss in the first session (307/2 @ lunch).
In the process, both openers Ajinkya Rahane (83 overnight) and captain Amol Muzumdar (86 overnight) reached their respective centuries. Amol's knock was all the more special considering he was playing his 100th Ranji match. It was also his first ton this season.
The duo put on 299 runs for the third wicket before Rahane (149) lost his wicket to Sandip Maniar. Amol (187) soon followed, trapped in front by Maniar again.
Rohit Sharma (41) and Abhishek Nair (41) then put on a 48-run partnership for the fifth wicket and it seemed Mumbai would, after all, manage a first innings lead and a semblance of respectability.
But then there was a Bollywood-style twist in the tale. Or shall we say an anti-climax?
Whatever it may be it witnessed the defending champions lose their last six wickets for only 37 runs. And it was the Sandeep Jobanputra-Cheteshwar Pujura combination which was chiefly responsible for these turn of events.
The first to fall was Sharma (at 426), caught at covers by Pujara off Jobanputra. The duo took out Romesh Powar in the very next ball, the latter being generous enough to play a rash shot, and Jobanputra was on a hat-trick.
Vishal Samant (8) ensured the bowler wasn't as lucky that time but Jobanputra had the final word as he soon had him caught, again by Pujara at covers.
Soon after Neelesh Kulkarni was needlessly run out, Nair lost his patience and was scalped by Makvana and even as Saurashtra captain Jaydev Shah took a good catch at mid-on to end last man Moondeep Mangela's (4) stay at the wicket, it was another man who was running all around celebrating.
Yes, Jobanputra had just got a much-deserved five-wicket haul (5/116) with Mangela's wicket - his third of the season - and ran all the way to the boundary to celebrate with his coach (Debu Mitra).
He was kind enough to explain the reason behind his celebration later.
"I had told my coach that I would pick up at least five wickets," said a beaming Jobanputra, who has now taken 32 wickets this season.
"I didn't want to let Mumbai take the first innings lead, especially after all the hard work we had done."
The seamer got what he wished and so did Saurashtra, who now play Uttar Pradesh in the semi-final at Baroda. In the other semi-final, Delhi will clash with Baroda at Indore.
