Karnataka Through To The Vijay Hazare Trophy Final
In what turned out to be an intriguing encounter at Kotambi Stadium in Vadodara, Karnataka scored an exciting five-wicket victory against Haryana in the semi-final of the Vijay Hazare Trophy 2024-25, thereby consolidating their place in the finals. After winning the toss, Haryana batted first and set a challenging target of 238 runs.
The innings got off to a watchful start for Haryana. The first to fall was opener Arsh Ranga, caught behind from the bowling of Abhilash Shetty for a mere 10 runs. H Rana and Ankit Kumar, the captain, played stabilizing roles, with Kumar scoring a quickfire 48 off 52 balls before being adjudged LBW by Shreyas Gopal. Rana’s innings was rather slow, accumulating 44 runs from 75 balls before Hardik Raj dismissed him. The middle order struggled thereafter, with Nishant Sindhu and Parth Vats succumbing early and only contributing a few runs.
Yet, decent late contributions came from Rahul Tewatia, who made 22 off 36, and Dinesh Bana, who contributed 20 off 26. The Haryana tail, particularly Anuj Thakral with an undefeated 23 off 15 deliveries, helped the team finish respectably with a final score of 237 for 9 in their 50 overs. Abhilash Shetty picked up 4 for 34 wickets, while Shreyas Gopal chipped in with two wickets.
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Chasing 238, Karnataka was off to a bumpy start, with captain Mayank Agarwal getting out for a duck in the very first over. The responsibility of taking Karnataka out of this trouble to rebuild the innings was put on the shoulders of Devdutt Padikkal and Aneesh KV. Padikkal scored a wonderful 86 off 113 balls, with 8 fours and a six, anchoring the innings with class and calmness, while Aneesh could only manage 22 runs before being dismissed-
The partnership was crucial for the win, as with theirs came a 128-run stand for the third wicket, Padikkal and Smaran Ravichandran. After Padikkal’s dismissal, Ravichandran’s vital knock of 76 runs off 94 balls became even more crucial. Though that little collapse allowed Karnataka two quick wickets not long afterward, they still faced the task of getting through 238 runs to win, with 30 balls left and 5 wickets gone.
Finally, Shreyas Gopal and Abhinav Manohar saw the game through for Karnataka, with Gopal staying 23 not out in 20 deliveries, with three boundaries. Karnataka cruising at 238 for 5 within 47.2 overs and winning it by 16 balls.
Nishant Sindhu from Haryana was the best bowler taking 2 wickets for 47 runs, but it was not enough to take Karnataka out of the final march. This match was a test not just of skill, but also of temperament, and Karnataka, while showing the mental and strategic power to chase this tall goal on a pitch where both bat and ball got some assistance, passed the test.
