Uthappa returns to boost Karnataka

Robin Uthappa, the Karnataka opening batsman who missed the first two Ranji Trophy games due to a hamstring strain, has been named in the squad for the next two matches. However, allrounder Stuart Binny, who scored a century in the drawn match against Gujarat, is set to miss the next two after injuring his right knee.

The team will be captained by the wicketkeeper CM Gautam, filling in for the regular captain Vinay Kumar, who has been called up to the India ODI squad for the home limited-overs series against West Indies.

Uthappa's absence for the first couple of games gave Mayank Agarwal an opportunity and he impressed with 90 on first-class debut. Ronit More, the right-arm seamer, is in the squad as Vinay's replacement.

Karnataka drew both their matches and are placed sixth in Group A with only four points. They travel to Nagpur to play Vidarbha from November 21, and then to Cuttack to take on Odisha.

Squad: CM Gautam (capt & wk), Mayank Agarwal, Robin Uthappa, KL Rahul, Kunal Kapoor, Manish Pandey, Ganesh Satish, Abhimanyu Mithun, HS Sharath, S Arvind, KP Appanna, Karun Nair, R Samarth, Abrar Kazi, Ronit More