Rahul’s hundred takes Karnataka into Ranji semis
India batter KL Rahul struck his 24th hundred in first-class cricket to anchor Karnataka’s brilliant four-wicket victory over 42-time champions Mumbai that steered the southern side into the semifinals of the Ranji Trophy here on Monday.Rahul made 130 off 182 balls with the help 14 boundaries and a six to set up Karnataka’s win in their quarterfinal fixture at the Mumbai Cricket Association Bandra Kurla Complex here. The visitors were chasing a steep 325. The win meant Karnataka would face Uttarakhand in the semifinal in Bengaluru next week.
Rahul, who is a prominent member of the Indian Test and ODI squads, found an able ally in Ravichandran Smaran, as the duo stitched together a match-winning partnership of 147 runs for the fourth wicket on the game’s penultimate day. Smaran remained not out on a composed 83 off 123 ball, and struck 11 fours. Thanks to Rahul’s knock, Karnataka, the eight-time winners of India’s premier domestic red-ball tournament, were cruising at 265 or three when the lunch break was taken.
However, his magnificent knock came to an end soon after lunch as he was dismissed by Tushar Deshpande. Karnataka was still some distance from the target of 325 at that stage. The big breakthrough gave Mumbai a glimmer of hope as their bowlers — Deshande and Tanush Kotian — dismissed two more to leave Karnataka at 285 for six and a good 40 runs from the target.
However, the 22-year-old Smaran, who has already amassed over 1000 runs in first-class cricket at an incredible average of 69.94, showed great character under pressure and stayed on till Vidyadhar Patil hit the winning run for Karnataka, the second most successful team in the tournament after Mumbai.
During his stay in the middle, the 33-year-old Rahul looked like a man on a mission and even after reaching his century, he just raised his bat briefly before going back to take guard once again. Rahul reached his hundred by nudging Kotian through the off-side for four. Rahul’s presence has been a huge positive for Karnataka since he joined the
