Skipper Arpit Vasavada struck a double hundred as Saurashtra took a crucial 120-run first innings lead against Karnataka here on Saturday to take a strong step towards reaching the Ranji Trophy final. Vasavada started his innings with 112 runs in the morning and scored 202 runs in 406 balls. Apart from him, Chirag Jani contributed 72 runs as Saurashtra posted a mammoth score of 527 in reply to Karnataka’s 407. Fast bowler Vidyut Kavarappa took five wickets for 83 runs for Karnataka.
If the match ends in a draw, then Saurashtra will qualify for the final on the basis of first innings lead. By the end of the fourth day’s play, Karnataka had scored 123 for four in their second innings. Mayank Agarwal, who scored a double century in the first innings, played a flamboyant 64 off 55 balls before being dismissed by Dharmendrasinh Jadeja. Apart from Agarwal, Karnataka lost the wickets of Ravikumar Samarth, Devdutt Padikkal and Manish Pandey. Nikin Jose was playing on 54 when the stumps were uprooted. Saurashtra won the Ranji Trophy title by defeating Bengal in the 2019-20 season.
