BENGALURU: Given Karnataka bowlers' dominance in the Ranji Trophy this season, it was not surprising that they wrapped up their quarterfinal against Uttarakhand with plenty to spare.
At the M Chinnaswamy Stadium here on Friday, the hosts needed 32. 4 overs on Day Four to register an innings and 281-run victory and seal a semifinal berth. Karnataka will now meet the winners of the lasteight match between Saurashtra and Punjab.
Centurion Shreyas Gopal (3/26) troubled the tailenders with his leg-spin to help dismiss Uttarakhand for 209 runs in an extended first session. Pacer Vyshak Vijaykumar (3/55) continued his impressive form, taking his wickets tally to 31.
"Our bowling has been a massive plus for us. To dismiss teams for 116 and 170-odd on a firstday's wicket at Chinnaswamy stadium means we are executing our plans well. The credit goes to the bowling unit for coming up trumps in every innings," said Karnataka captain Mayank Agarwal.
After Venkatesh M (2/44) scalped Dikshanshu Negi (29) in the eight over of the day, the countdown started. But Swapnil Singh (51; 100b, 7x4, 1x6) was determined to put a price on his wicket.
Swapnil looked quite solid but after completing his half-century, he outside-edged Vyshak to Devdutt Padikkal at first slip.
At 144/5, Uttarakhand turned to experienced domestic campaigner Aditya Tare (28). But the Mumbaikar failed to find support at the other end. Akhil Singh Rawat (10) also fell to a Vyshak delivery, with Padikkal diving to his right to bring off a smart catch at slip.
Abhay Negi (15) followed soon after, trapped leg before by Shreyas. Brief Scores: Karnataka 606 (Shreyas 161*, Agarwal 83, Samarth 82, Negi 4-109, Mishra 3-107) beat Uttarakhand 116 and 209 (Swapnil 51, Shreyas 3-26, Vyshak 3-55) by an innings and 281 runs.
