India, Oct. 15 -- Prithvi Shaw and Sarfaraz Khan's pre-season efforts and preparation amounted to nothing as both flopped in their respective Ranji Trophy openers on Tuesday. While Shaw was dismissed for a four-ball duck in Maharashtra's match against Kerala at the Greenfield International Stadium in Thiruvananthapuram, Sarfaraz suffered a similar fate, in three balls, during Mumbai's opening game against Jammu and Kashmir at the Sher-i-Kashmir Stadium in Srinagar.

Ahead of the season, Shaw shared an Instagram post performing prayers and a pooja, captioning it, "Prayers that calm my heart and guide my path." Yet, his Ranji Trophy debut for Maharashtra got off to a futile start, as he edged a fuller delivery that seamed back, hitting him ...