Bowlers hand Karnataka advantage against TN in Ranji Group C match

Chennai, Feb 10 (PTI) Karnataka bowlers rose to the occasion to reduce Tamil Nadu to 129 for 7 after Devdutt Padikkal's superb 151 to take the visitors to a commanding position at stumps on the second day of their Ranji Trophy Group C match here on Saturday.

Southpaw Padikkal, who continued his red-hot form, scored 151 off 218 balls with the help of 12 boundaries and six maximums, his third Ranji Trophy hundred this season, but failed to add on to his overnight score after being dismissed in the second ball of the day.

Resuming at the overnight score of 288 for 5, Hardik Raj (51) completed his maiden first-class fifty, while wicketkeeper Srinivas Sharath made 45 off 83 balls with the last five Karnataka batters adding just 78 runs to be bowled out for 366 in 119.4 overs.

But the Karnataka bowlers equally responded to their batting colleagues, picking up wickets at regular intervals to reduce their southern opponents to 129 for seven in 56 overs.

Off-spinner L Sashi Kumar (3/41) picked up three wickets, while Hardik (2/47) chipped in with two scalps. Vidwath Kaverappa (1/12) and Vijaykumar Vyshak (1/19) also shared the spoils between them.

Narayan Jagadeesan (40 off 56), Baba Indrajith (35 not out) and Vimal Kumar (14) were the only only double digit contributors for Tamil Nadu.

At the close of play, Tamil Nadu still trail Karnataka by 237 runs.

In another Group C tie in Mohali, Gujarat took the vital first innings lead over Punjab.

Resuming at the overnight score of 250 for eight, Gujarat finished at 339 in 94.3 overs but produced a superb bowling display to bundle out the hosts for 219 in 56.5 overs.

Medium pacer Priyajitsing Jadeja starred with the ball with figures of 5 for 60, while Chintan Gaja (3/71) accounted for three wickets.

Punjab skipper Mandeep Singh (76 not out off 110) waged a lone battle, while last man Baltej Singh made 42 off 43 balls. In a Group C tie in Chandigarh, Tripura reached 187 for four in 62 overs in reply to the home team's 356 all out.

In Surat's Group C contest, Railways took a vital first innings of 97 runs lead after bowling out Goa for 200. At stumps, the Railwaymen were 31 for no loss, extending their overall lead to 128 runs.

Brief scores: In Chennai: Karnataka 366 all out in 119.4 overs (Devdutt Padikkal 151; Ajith Ram 4/75 ) vs Tamil Nadu 129 for 7 in 56 overs (Narayan Jagadeesan; K Shashi Kumar 3/41).

In Chandigarh: Chandigarh 356 all out in 116 overs (Manan Vohra 134, Ankit Kaushik 76; Bikramjit Debnath 3/31) vs Tripura 187 for 4 in 62 overs (Ganesh Satish 67 batting, Bikramjit Debnath 50 batting; Rohit Dhanda 2/32).

In Surat: Railways 297 all out in 90.5 overs (Upendra Yadav 91; Deepraj Gaonkar 3/26) & 31 for no loss in 11 overs vs Goa 200 all out in 68.2 overs (Amogh Sunil Desai 61; Adarsh Singh 4/41).

In Mohali: Gujarat 339 all out (Priyank Panchal 77, Aditya Patel 58, Arzan Nagwaswalla 50 not out; Siddarth Kaul 3/87, Arshdeep Singh 3/101) vs Punjab 219 all out in 56.5 overs (Mandeep Singh 76 not out; Priyajitsing Jadeja 5/60). PTI SSC SSC KHS KHS