HUBBALI: R Smaran (227 n.o) and Shikhar Shetty (59, 2/43 & 5/61), two youngsters who say they have benefited immensely from the return of seasoned pros Karun Nair (95) and Shreyas Gopal (62, 7/73 & 3/45), turned showstoppers in the Ranji Trophy match against Chandigarh here as Karnataka recorded an innings and 185-run victory with a day to spare on Tuesday.After Smaran’s remarkably composed 227 not out on Monday, Shreyas wreaked havoc with the ball, leaving Chandigarh with a mountain to climb. They never did, as 16 Chandigarh wickets fell on Tuesday.While Karnataka’s bowlers barely put a foot wrong, Chandigarh’s players appeared confused about the format. They swung the willow like tailenders in a T20 game, attempting to hoick just about everything over the fence.Sample this: Of the 222 runs Chandigarh scored in the first innings, 124 came off boundaries. But that was also their undoing. Barring skipper Manan Vohra, who scored an unbeaten 161-ball 106 (12×4; 1×6), most of the others did not bother to either fight time or the opposition. They were easy pickings for the home side.Chandigarh began the day at 72/4, a humongous 475 runs in deficit. Shreyas, who scalped three of those four wickets on Monday, capped a fine all-round performance by adding another four Chandigarh first innings wickets to his kitty.The carnage began right from the first ball. Ankit Kaushik was struck on the back foot, a situation the opposition batters often found themselves in when trying to defend, and was adjudged leg-before off Shreyas.Rajangad Bawa (10) and Gaurav Puri (32) offered some resistance before the former edged Shreyas to wicketkeeper KL Shrijith. Gaurav struck three consecutive boundaries off Shreyas’ bowling before a Shikhar delivery turned sharply and disturbed his middle stump.Chandigarh went into lunch with 199/8 on board, and it didn’t take Shikhar and Shreyas long to mop up the tail.Trailing by 325 runs, the visiting side was asked to follow on, but they seemed to be in a hurry to head back home. They lasted all of 33.5 overs.Pacer Vidwath Kaverappa opened the floodgates when Ajun Azad (0) handed Mohsin Khan a catch at midoff in the third over. Shivam Bhambri (43) and Nikhil Thakur delayed the inevitable with their 64-run partnership for the second wicket. But with Shreyas and Shikhar applying pressure, they crumbled.Shivam’s attempt to play defence against Shikhar was taken by Smaran in the slips, and that added momentum to Karnataka’s victory march.On the slow track, Shikhar upped his pace and mixed it with slower deliveries to leave the Chandigarh batters confused as they ensured the left-arm pacers maiden five-wicket haul in his third First Class match. They lost their last four wickets for the addition of 15 runs.The 20-year-old Shikhar, who also scored his first half-century, later said, “I’m yet to process the fact that I’ve taken a five-wicket haul in Ranji Trophy. I’m pleased to have delivered for the team. It has been a learning curve to play alongside Shreyas, who constantly guides me on the field. I try my best to match that.”With the win, Karnataka will head into the break for white ball competition as Group B toppers with 21 points. When the tournament resumes on Jan 22, Karnataka hosts Madhya Pradesh in Bengaluru.SCOREBOARDKarnataka (I innings): 547/8 declChandigarh (I innings; o/n 72/4): Manan Vohra (not out) 106, Ankit Kaushik lbw Shreyas 0, Rajangad Bawa c Shrijith b Shreyas 10, Gaurav Puri b Shikhar 32, Taranpreet Singh c Aneesh b Shreyas 7, Jagjit Sandhu lbw Shreyas 0, Nishunk Birla b Shikhar 9. Extras (B-4): 4. Total (all out; 63.2 overs) 222Fall of wickets: 5-72, 6-104, 7-188, 8-199, 9-201.Bowling: Vidwath Kaverappa 5-1-14-0, Vidhyadhar Patil 7-2-34-0, Mohsin Khan 12-0-54-1, Shreyas Gopal 23-2-73-7, Shikhar Shetty 16.2-3-43-2.Chandigarh (II innings): Shivam Bhambri c Smaran b Shikhar 43, Arjun Azad c Mohsin b Vidwath 0, Nikhil Thakur lbw b Shreyas 19, Vohra c Smaran b Shikhar 6, Kaushik c Smaran b Shikhar 0, Bawa (run out) 27, Puri c Abhinav b Shikhar 13, Taranpreet c Karun b Shreyas, Vishu c Mohsin b Shikhar 5, Jagjit b Shreyas 4. Extras (B-8; LB-10): 18. Total (all out; 33.5 overs) 140.Fall of wickets: 1-1, 2-65, 3-71, 4-75, 5-95, 6-120, 7-125, 8-130, 9-134.Bowling: Vidwath 4-2-2-1, Vidhyadhar 3-1-10-0, Shreyas 13-1-45-3, Shikhar 12.5-2-61-5, Mohsin 1-0-4-0.
