JOIN USErratic Karnataka in a spot
There is a certain charm to sport when the underdogs do the unexpected.
Odds were heavily in favour of Karnataka ahead of their Ranji Trophy quarterfinal against Jammu & Kashmir. The hosts were seen only as a team having an outside chance. Poor weather and limited facilities at the Gandhi Memorial Science College ground here offered the first twist in the script.
The biggest surprise though arrived when full play was finally a reality. J&K were a side that made the right noises en route to knockouts. The minnows had five batsmen with 400 plus scores and as many bowlers with more than 20 wickets. However, they were fighting their biggest battle of the tournament yet on Saturday. It was an opportunity for them to prove their mettle against one of the best teams in the country. At the end of an absorbing contest, J&K had done just that.
A near-disciplined effort with ball helped them skittle Karnataka -- resuming from 14/2 -- to a below par 206. For them to take complete honours of the day, J&K still had to see off a tricky final session. Their batsmen embraced the challenge with admirable grit and focus to reach 88/2 at stumps. Trailing by 118 runs with eight wickets in hand, J&K has seized an advantage that not many predicted.
The pace trio of Umar Nazir, Aquib Nabi and Mujtaba Yousuf have a combined experience of 47 first-class matches. Yet, the remarkable discipline they showed against a mighty batting line-up would have pleased J&K’s mentor Irfan Pathan. Continuously bowling in the right channels, the pacers hardly gave the batsmen any leeway.
Karnataka captain Karun Nair departed on the second ball of the day, nicking one to wicketkeeper Fazil Rashid off Nabi. Manish Pandey couldn’t go beyond his entertaining 37 (26b, 7x4) when he edged a Mujtaba delivery that kicked-up a bit from good length to Rashid.
KV Siddharth (76, 189b, 9x4) and Sharath Srinivas (26, 91b, 4x4) put on 69 for the fifth wicket. The duo’s fight ended very early into the second session. Mujtaba moved one away to induce an edge from Sharath and wicketkeeper Rashid pocketed a neat catch.
Siddharth’s lone battle was significant with the uneven bounce troubling the batsmen as the ball grew older. Playing with straight bat and applying himself well on the surface, the right-hander essayed some delightful drives to the fence.
An opportunity to notch up his third first-class ton was squandered courtesy a half-hearted shot Dancing down the track to J&K skipper Parvez Rasool, he closed the face of the bat at the last moment as the ball took a leading edge to the bowler. Rasool, using his experience, maintained the pressure on the Karnataka batsmen. The reliable lower order of Karnataka failed to produce rearguard act again.
Karnataka’s quality line-up had flattered to deceive. It is a problem that has plagued them throughout the season. On the flip side, J&K’s plans worked to perfection.
On the fourth day, J&K has a great chance of taking one step closer to history. A vociferous home crowd will test Karnataka’s character. That said, rising from the dead isn’t new to Karnataka.
SCORE BOARD
KARNATAKA (I INNINGS; O/n 14/2): R Samarth c Rashid b Nabi 5 (15m, 11b), Devdutt Padikkal c Pundir b Mujtaba 2 (29m, 12b), Karun Nair c Pundir b Nabi 4 (22m, 10b), KV Siddharth c & b Rasool 76 (268m, 189b, 9x4), Manish Pandey c Rashid b Mujtaba 37 (47m, 26b, 7x4), Sharath Srinivas c Rashid b Mujtaba 26 (133m, 91b, 4x4), K Gowtham lbw Mushtaq 4 (13m, 10b), J Suchith c & b Rasool 18 (56m, 43b, 1x4), Abhimanyu Mithun c Rashid b Nabi 5 (13m, 6, 1x4), Ronit More lbw Rasool 10 (17m, 13b, 1x6), Prasidh Krishna (not out) 0 (10m, 4b). Extras (B-13, LB-6) 19. Total (all out, 69.1 overs) 206.
Fall of wickets: 1-8 (Samarth), 2-14 (Padikkal), 3-14 (Nair), 4-75 (Pandey), 5-144 (Sharath), 6-153 (Gowtham), 7-191 (Suchith), 8-192 (Siddharth), 9-198 (Mithun).
Bowling: Aquib Nabi 17-4-45-3, Mujtaba Yousuf 16-5-45-3, Umar Nazir 13-2-38-0, Parvez Rasool 12.1-0-36-3, Abid Mushtaq 11-3-23-1.
JAMMU & KASHMIR (I INNINGS): Shubham Khajuria (batting) 39 (126m, 112b, 6x4), Suryansh Raina lbw Gowtham 12 (43m, 23b, 2x4), Henan Nazir c Nair b Suchith 12 (45m, 35b, 1x4), Shubham Pundir (batting) 16 (36m, 34b, 2x4). Extras (B-8, LB-1) 9. Total (for 2 wkts, 34 overs) 88.
Fall of wickets: 1-30 (Raina), 2-62 (Nazir).
Bowling: A Mithun 5-3-9-0, M Prasidh 4-0-12-0, K Gowtham 12-1-30-1, Ronit More 3-1-9-0, J Suchith 10-3-19-1.