Karnataka bowlers to the fore in thumping win over Arunachal Pradesh

Karnataka scored a crushing 10-wicket win against Arunachal Pradesh at Mohali to keep its hopes of moving into the knock-out stage of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy T20 tournament alive at Mohali on Tuesday.

Arunachal had no answer to an excellent show from the Karnataka bowlers and was all out for 75, with four balls remaining. Rohan Sharma was the top-scorer with 18.

Seamer Vidhwath Kaverappa came up with another fine show, taking three for 22. He had picked up five wickets in the last match, against Jammu & Kashmir.

His new-ball partner Vasuki Koushik recorded remarkable figures of three for five from 3.2 overs. Left-arm spinner J. Suchith claimed two wickets.

The modest target was achieved in just 6.5 overs by Devdutt Padikkal (28 not out, 5×4) and captain Mayank Agarwal (47 not out, 21b, 5×4, 3×6). Karnataka coach P.V. Shashikanth said that he was glad the openers finished the job with plenty of overs to spare.

“This is a group of death and run-rate could come into play for the qualification to the knock-out stage,” he told The Hindu. “Though Arunachal’s batting isn’t strong, the way our bowlers bowled merits mention. All of them bowled well, and I am happy to see that Vidhwath has been bowling consistently in his first T20 tournament.”

Meanwhile, Kerala slid to its second straight defeat, going down to Maharashtra by 40 runs. Chasing Maharashtra’s 167 for four, Kerala could only manage 127 for eight.

Only opener Rohan S. Kunnummal (58, 44b, 7×4, 1×6) could make a meaningful contribution. Nobody else managed to reach 20.

When left-arm spinner Satyajeet Bachhav dismissed captain Sanju Samson for three, Kerala slumped to 86 for five. Rohan also went in the same over; and it was virtually all over for Kerala.

Earlier, opener Ruturaj Gaikwad scored his second century of the tournament. The skipper struck 114 off just 68 balls (8×4, 7×6) and added 84 for the first wicket with Pavan Shah (31, 29b, 2×6).