GROUP B
Rajkot, Oct 18: Karnataka’s reluctance for an early declaration robbed them of the time to bowl out Saurashtra in their second innings as the Ranji Trophy Elite B match ended in a draw on the fourth and final day here on Saturday.
Saurashtra were 128 for five in their second innings on an uneven pitch when the match came to a close.Just like in the first innings, leg-spinner Shreyas Gopal was Karnataka’s star in the second dig too, bagging three wickets to complete a match-haul of 11 wickets.
Chasing an improbable 229 in one and half sessions, Saurashtra were in a spot of bother at 43 for four in the 13th over, and they had 40 overs more to negotiate.
Shreyas did all the damage upfront using the unpredictability of the track to the hilt, and the batters struggled to pick his quick off the surface googlies.
His delivery to dismiss Ansh Gosai underlined that point, as the Saurashtra right-hander looked to play a googly with static feet, but the ball zipped past him to crash on to the stumps.But Saurashtra’s fifth wicket pair of Gajjar Sammar (43 not out, 110 balls) and Jay Gohil (41, 73 balls), the concussion substitute for Taranggohel, batted resolutely while adding 81 runs.The stand, which lasted for 26 overs, ensured three points for Saurashtra, and Karnataka would rue their call to bat on well into the second session despite having a handy 180-plus lead.A bold declaration at that point might have given Karnataka an extra hour to have a go at the hosts’ batters, but they preferred to build a safety net around them with a few extra runs.
Earlier, in their second innings, Karnataka adopted a rather aggressive approach with skipper Mayank Agarwal leading their effort with a 64.Wicketkeeper batter KL Shrijith gave him good backing with a 30-ball 31.
Innings win for Goa
At Porvorim, Goa defeated Chandigarh by an innings and 75 runs despite a fighting 141 from Arjun Azad, who helped his team reach 354 in the second innings after following on.
Goa bagged seven points from the contest. (PTI)
