Ranji Trophy: Karnataka's lack of skills on flat decks evident

Hubballi: Cliched as it might sound, Karnataka’s run to the final of the Ranji Trophy from Rajkot to Hubballi this season was a roller coaster ride.  

Having picked up just four points from the first two games, they shifted gears and amped up their intensity along the way and dominated when in control. 

A slip up at home had their tournament in jeopardy; their captain was replaced, and once they had a new skipper and flew in India internationals, they finished second in their group. 

Following a fighting win over Mumbai (quarters) and a stamp of authority against Uttarakhand (semis), they ran out of steam in the final hurdle. 

“We wanted to finish it on a high, didn’t happen. It’s a work in progress. We will keep improving,” Yere Goud said. 

The word in and around the KSCA Rajnagar Stadium here, however, was that Auqib Nabi’s outrageous skill to make the ball talk on a lifeless wicket, was the difference between the two sides. 

Incidentally, when Karnataka won their last title 11 years ago, they were not completely dependent on surfaces with Vinay Kumar and Sreenath Arvind in their ranks -- the two bowlers who possessed skills to hit the seam and extract movement off even docile surfaces. 

This time, Karnataka needed all the assistance they got from the pitches for outright wins, and failed to pick up 20 wickets in six out of the 10 games. And in the final, they picked up 14 wickets in 286.1 overs. 

In the four matches they managed to take all 20, two were on spin-friendly conditions in Mangalapuram (vs Kerala) and in Hubballi (vs Chandigarh).

“Not giving any reason but things didn’t go our way (in the final). A few edges and the result could have been much different in the end. They tried their best but it didn’t happen.”

While Vidwath Kaverappa and Vyshak Vijaykumar bring in the variety of bounce and pace, respectively, Karnataka currently miss a bowler who could dry up one end and frustrate the batters.

They will need to develop a bowler who will stifle the opposition by challenging their edges and pads consistently and make batters play more often, especially with surfaces that ask for patience out of the bowler -- something that Vasuki Koushik had done so well for them a couple of seasons before shifting to Goa.

Vidyadhar Patil, only 13 matches old in first-class cricket, showcased his talent by moving the ball both ways while picking up 19 wickets. 

While Prasidh Krishna’s (18 wickets) presence handed Karnataka a massive boost, there will certainly be doubts over his availability throughout the season.

Talking about the spinners, Shreyas Gopal did all the heavy lifting and picked up 48 wickets. While the supporting Shikhar Shetty (22) and Mohsin Khan (15) showed promise, the inadequacies came out when Shreyas had an off-day. 

While bowling has a fair bit of issues, the ageing batting order and availability factor are another issue. 

Karun Nair and Mayank Agarwal, 34 and 35, respectively, collectively scored 1377 runs with four hundreds to their name. And were two of their top three highest run-getters. Team should have suitable replacements ready as and when the veteran duo step aside.   

New skipper Devdutt Padikkal is constantly knocking on the India doors while K L Rahul availability is always going to scarce.       

While Karnataka have unearthed a proper middle-order batter in Smaran R, who emerged as the leading run-scorer in the tournament, they will need to start backing some from under-23 pipeline. 

Smaran R

Highlights - number game
Top batters 
R Smaran: M: 9; R: 950; HS: 227*; Avg: 86.36
Karun Nair: M: 9; R: 699; HS: 232; Avg: 58.25, 
Mayank Agarwal: M: 10; R: 678; HS: 160; Avg: 42.37
Top bowlers 
Shreyas Gopal: M: 10; W: 48; Avg: 23.14; BBI: 8/110
Shikhar Shetty: M: 8; W: 22; Avg: 42.00; BBI: 6/61
Vidwath Kaverappa: M: 6; W: 21; Avg: 20.04; BBI: 5/51