The 1945–46 Ranji Trophy was the 12th season of the Ranji Trophy. Holkar won the title defeating Baroda in the final.
Highlights
Holkar scored 912 for 8 decl against Mysore in the semifinal. This was the highest score in Indian first class cricket till Hyderabad made 944 for 6 against Andhra in 1993-94
There were seven century partnerships in the Holkar innings. All wickets from one to eight, except the second, made more than a hundred runs
B. K. Garudachar took 4 wickets for 301 runs. This is the most expensive bowling in Indian cricket and third in all first class cricket.
Chandu Sarwate took 9 for 61 in the Mysore first innings in addition to his hundred. It is the only instance of a century and nine wickets in an innings in Indian cricket.
Mysore conceded the match on the fourth day.
Baroda won the Zonal finals and the Semifinals by spin of coin, as both match couldn't produce a winner. The Zonal finals drew with first innings incomplete and the semifinal ended in a tie.
Vijay Merchant averaged 405.00 with the bat (405 in two innings, once out). This is the highest batting average achieved for any Ranji season.
C. K. Nayudu scored 200 for Holkar v Baroda in the final at the age of 50 years and 142 days. He is the oldest Indian cricketer to score a double hundred in first class cricket. Nayudu is the fifth oldest double centurion in all first class cricket, after Dave Nourse, John King, Archie MacLaren and Jack Hobbs.
