RANJI TROPHY | Padikkals return adds heft to table-topper Karnatakas batting

The return of Devdutt Padikkal will bolster Karnataka’s hopes when it takes on Madhya Pradesh in their Elite ‘B’ Ranji Trophy match which commences at the Alur (1) ground here on Thursday. 

Padikkal has been in sublime touch, racking up the runs in the recent Syed Mushtaq Ali and Vijay Hazare Trophy limited-over matches. He has, however, played just the one game in this Ranji Trophy season. The southpaw is likely to open the batting alongside skipper Mayank Agarwal. 

Karnataka enters this penultimate group stage outing as the table-topper (21 points), three ahead of nearest rivals Madhya Pradesh and Maharashtra.

Padikkal’s inclusion provides some relief for the home team, which will miss the services of an injured R. Smaran, who was among Karnataka’s best batters in this tournament, having notched up 595 runs at an average of 119.

The middle-order rests on the exploits of Karun Nair — the team’s highest run-scorer. Karun’s good form flowed into the Vijay Hazare Trophy campaign, where Karnataka was knocked out in the semifinals. 

Yet another experienced name, Shreyas Gopal, has done well with ball in hand. The leg-spinner claimed a 10-wicket match-haul in the previous outing against Chandigarh, and is now the current joint fourth highest wicket-taker of the tournament (27 wickets) this season.

Shreyas, spin partner Shikhar Shetty and pace spearhead Vidwath Kaverappa will go up against two quality Madhya Pradesh batters in Rajat Patidar and Venkatesh Iyer. 

The visitor also relies heavily on Saransh Jain, who has picked up 19 wickets with his off-spin while making handy contributions with the bat. In Saransh and left-arm spinner Kumar Kartikeya, Madhya Pradesh boasts of a quality spin attack. 

A positive result for Madhya Pradesh will go a long way as the race to seal a knockout berth heats up.