'Team applause meant a lot'

When Karnataka opener Mayank Agarwal reached his maiden Ranji Trophy century with a cracking cover drive, the 24-year-old received a rousing response from his team-mates. Agarwal said it was a great feeling to see the entire team happy about his performance.

“More than anything, the best feeling was to see the way the team reacted. I got the feeling that the team wanted me to get the hundred. The way they celebrated, it showed the true Karnataka dressing room. It felt like a family,” said Agarwal.

Agarwal, along with senior batsman Robin Uthappa dominated the Delhi bowlers completely and the opener revealed the plan was to play responsibly and not give away wickets easily. “It (ball) did move a bit in the first half an hour. But after we settled down, we had to be responsible. And when you have Robin (Uthappa) batting at the other side, it becomes very easy. We played the main bowlers well and he (Uthappa) went after the part-timers”

Agarwal said Karnataka would be looking to post a huge first innings total on the board. “We will discuss about an ideal first innings score in the team meeting but we would love to have a total close to 550-600 on board and then put them (Delhi) under the pressure.” Uthappa, the other centurion on the day, dedicated his ton to former KSCA President K M  Ram Prasad, who passed away on Monday morning.

“We have also lost one of our loved ones, our former president. I personally was very close to him and would like to dedicate my century to him. He has always supported me. He always had a word of encouragement whenever we met,” Uthappa said.

With S Arvind, HS Sharath and Abhimanyu Mithun back in the side for this game, Karnataka are playing four seamers and Uthappa felt his side has enough firepower to trouble Delhi. “With the kind of bowlers we have, with all due respect to Delhi, we can really do well in the coming days.”