Karnataka cruise to semifinals

The end, when it came, was tame and all too familiar, as Karnataka batted out the final day to take home a draw, and with it a place in the semifinals of the Ranji Trophy. Barrington Rowland helped himself to an unbeaten century and Karnataka finished on 249 for 3. Saurashtra, who had failed to avert the follow-on, were nevertheless not asked to bat again, and spent the day doing little more than providing batting practice to Karnataka.

When the day began with Saurashtra still 58 runs shy of the follow-on mark, there was just a hint of anticipation in the air that Karnataka might go for the kill and try to force an outright win. However, that was little more than wishful thinking. On a pitch that had eased out nicely and was a batting beauty, there was little chance that this Karnataka bowling attack could roll Saurashtra over cheaply enough.

What did happen, though, was that Saurashtra went from an overnight 352 for 8 to 354 all out in the space of only six balls. With Rakesh Dhruv out of the equation having fractured a finger in his left hand while fielding in the first innings, it was only a question of picking up one more wicket, and B Akhil did just that, bowling out Feroz Bambhaniya in the very first over.

Karnataka had a 216-run lead, but with a semi-final against Bengal coming up in ten days, they preferred to give their batsmen a go. The Saurashtra side were minus the services of Sandeep Jobanputra, their nippy left-arm seamer, who had done a hamstring in the course of the match, and it was an ideal opportunity for Robin Uthappa, who had just been picked to play for India in the first two one-day internationals against West Indies, to fill his boots. But it was one that went abegging. Uthappa flashed at Kanaiya Vaghela and was easily caught for only 23 - an innings that included four boundaries that came at better than a-run-a-ball.

C Raghu came out to join Rowland, and the depleted Saurashtra attack was then picked off with monotonous regularity. Both batsmen posted half-centuries, and slowly but surely the regular bowlers gave way to the part-timers, only making batting even easier. Rowland was his careful, orthodox self, while Raghu was more busy, working the ball around and keeping the scoreboard ticking over.

After a 136-run partnership for the second wicket, against the grain of play, a wicket fell, when Raghu, attempting to push the ball for a single, was caught off Kamlesh Makvana, the offspinner. Raghu had made 66, and at the fall of the second wicket, the small crowd gathered looked expectantly to the Karnataka balcony, expecting Rahul Dravid to emerge down the steps. No such thing happened, and understandably so. With nothing to play for in the game it was a chance for some of the younger guys to have a go.

Thilak Naidu joined Rowland out in the middle, and played some pleasing shots, driving the spinners well through cover. When the players went off the field for tea the end of the game was in sight, and the only thing that remained was Rowland's century. But, just like the previous day, a wicket fell soon after tea, with Naidu (44) pulling the part-time offspin of Jaydev Shah straight to Makvana at midwicket.

Akhil joined Rowland in the middle, and ensured there were no more blips. The game, by this stage, had lost all import, and Sagar Jogiyani, the Saurashtra keeper, had relinquished his pads to bowl gentle mediumpace. Rowland completed his century, and promptly the players trooped off the field with Karnataka on 249 from 74.2 overs. The minimum requirement for calling off a game by mutual consent on the final day is 75 overs, and with Saurashtra having played one over in the morning, there was nothing stopping the players from enjoying the comfort of the dressing-room.

Karnataka now take on Bengal in one semifinal from 23-27 January, while Mumbai take on Baroda simultaneously in the other, as this Ranji season winds to a close.