<p>Bengaluru: Surely this is a coincidence, but Karnataka do not have a long history of left-handed batters.</p>.<p>While there have been some good names every once in a while, not many bring up an image of sustained dominance. Perhaps that's the case across India because left-handers in general are a rarity, but Karnataka seem to have bucked the trend, or started a new one. </p>.Ranji Trophy: ‘Kid’ Smaran makes a statement with touch of class.<p>In Karnataka's playing XI in their previous Ranji Trophy tie against Punjab, Mayank Agarwal's men went into the game with Devdutt Padikkal, R Smaran and KL Shrijith. That’s three left-handed batters at No. 3, 4 and 5, while Abhilash Shetty, a pacer with an impressive batting acumen, came in at No. 11. </p>.<p>Amid all this young left-handed talent, one stood out, and it wasn’t Padikkal.</p>.<p>Padikkal has played two Tests, a couple of Twenty20 Internationals for India and 42 first-class games for Karnataka, and the 24-year-old has been in circulation on the international circuit for a few years now. But, his tendency to get squared up habitually or play the occasionally flawed cover drive has been his undoing, and it was so against Punjab too. </p>.<p>Meanwhile, at the other end, Smaran was just there - standing with his legs crossed, looking skywards from time to time, almost unbothered by the happenings at the M Chinnaswamy stadium until he took guard and slouched over. A throwback stance with his bat going up and down as if moving to an unseen, unheard metronome, and then came the ping off his bat…. 'shot'! </p>.<p>Try as we did, finding flaws became harder and harder as Smaran’s innings progressed, and there were 277 deliveries to find them. There were some edges here and there, but for most of his 203, a knock which gave Karnataka a bonus-point win, he was undoubtedly the best batter on the ground. That’s saying a lot because Karnataka has some fine talent, and Punjab came with Shubman Gill.</p>.<p>“It was never on my mind to get a double-century,” he told DH. “I was only focussed on playing the ball on its merit, not forcing shots. I used to make that mistake when I was young because I was very restless and I didn’t put a price on my wicket, but now I have learnt how to.”</p>.<p>Having started his career at a nondescript cricket club in JP Nagar to avoid annoying his mother, Smaran went on to pile up big scores in age-group cricket and was quickly identified as the one to watch out for. But even by those standards, it came as a surprise to those outside the system that he was picked for the Under-19 side when he was only 14-years-old. </p>.<p>Turns out, the selectors were on point, even if didn’t seem so at the beginning of his first-class career. Smaran scored a mere 145 runs from his first five red-ball games, giving rise to claims that he wasn’t ready for the gig. </p>.<p>When the white-ball season began, he carried those voices over, but you could see him growing in confidence with every passing game. This eventually resulted in a cracking century against Vidarbha in the final. </p>.<p>“That century is what I needed to get momentum,” he admits. “I know I didn’t start well, but I need to get a feel for the ball. After that, the format change didn’t matter too much. I just needed to get my process in place.”</p>.<p>At 21-years-old, Smaran has already shown a full range of what he is capable of. From his 800-run CK Nayudu Trophy season to his unbeaten century at the Maharaja Trophy for the Gulbarga Mystics. From his Vijay Hazare century a couple of weeks ago to the piece de resistance from last week. </p>.<p>Smaran could well be Karnataka’s future, and it - with an undeniable touch of South Bengalurean nonchalance to it - looks a good one. </p>
<p>Bengaluru: Surely this is a coincidence, but Karnataka do not have a long history of left-handed batters.</p>.<p>While there have been some good names every once in a while, not many bring up an image of sustained dominance. Perhaps that's the case across India because left-handers in general are a rarity, but Karnataka seem to have bucked the trend, or started a new one. </p>.Ranji Trophy: ‘Kid’ Smaran makes a statement with touch of class.<p>In Karnataka's playing XI in their previous Ranji Trophy tie against Punjab, Mayank Agarwal's men went into the game with Devdutt Padikkal, R Smaran and KL Shrijith. That’s three left-handed batters at No. 3, 4 and 5, while Abhilash Shetty, a pacer with an impressive batting acumen, came in at No. 11. </p>.<p>Amid all this young left-handed talent, one stood out, and it wasn’t Padikkal.</p>.<p>Padikkal has played two Tests, a couple of Twenty20 Internationals for India and 42 first-class games for Karnataka, and the 24-year-old has been in circulation on the international circuit for a few years now. But, his tendency to get squared up habitually or play the occasionally flawed cover drive has been his undoing, and it was so against Punjab too. </p>.<p>Meanwhile, at the other end, Smaran was just there - standing with his legs crossed, looking skywards from time to time, almost unbothered by the happenings at the M Chinnaswamy stadium until he took guard and slouched over. A throwback stance with his bat going up and down as if moving to an unseen, unheard metronome, and then came the ping off his bat…. 'shot'! </p>.<p>Try as we did, finding flaws became harder and harder as Smaran’s innings progressed, and there were 277 deliveries to find them. There were some edges here and there, but for most of his 203, a knock which gave Karnataka a bonus-point win, he was undoubtedly the best batter on the ground. That’s saying a lot because Karnataka has some fine talent, and Punjab came with Shubman Gill.</p>.<p>“It was never on my mind to get a double-century,” he told DH. “I was only focussed on playing the ball on its merit, not forcing shots. I used to make that mistake when I was young because I was very restless and I didn’t put a price on my wicket, but now I have learnt how to.”</p>.<p>Having started his career at a nondescript cricket club in JP Nagar to avoid annoying his mother, Smaran went on to pile up big scores in age-group cricket and was quickly identified as the one to watch out for. But even by those standards, it came as a surprise to those outside the system that he was picked for the Under-19 side when he was only 14-years-old. </p>.<p>Turns out, the selectors were on point, even if didn’t seem so at the beginning of his first-class career. Smaran scored a mere 145 runs from his first five red-ball games, giving rise to claims that he wasn’t ready for the gig. </p>.<p>When the white-ball season began, he carried those voices over, but you could see him growing in confidence with every passing game. This eventually resulted in a cracking century against Vidarbha in the final. </p>.<p>“That century is what I needed to get momentum,” he admits. “I know I didn’t start well, but I need to get a feel for the ball. After that, the format change didn’t matter too much. I just needed to get my process in place.”</p>.<p>At 21-years-old, Smaran has already shown a full range of what he is capable of. From his 800-run CK Nayudu Trophy season to his unbeaten century at the Maharaja Trophy for the Gulbarga Mystics. From his Vijay Hazare century a couple of weeks ago to the piece de resistance from last week. </p>.<p>Smaran could well be Karnataka’s future, and it - with an undeniable touch of South Bengalurean nonchalance to it - looks a good one. </p>