Defending champions Karnataka crash out of Ranji Trophy 2015-16

Defending champions Karnataka crash out of Ranji Trophy 2015-16: With the final game in the league stage between Karnataka and Maharashtra, played between 1st Dec and 4h Dec, 2015, at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium, Pune, ending in favour of the host, the defending champions, Karnataka, crashed out of the tournament, failing to make it to the knock-out round.

Put into bat by the visitors, Maharashtra went on to score 212 runs in their first innings, backed by a well made unbeaten 87* runs (209m, 158b, 8 fours, 5 sixes) by Ankit Bavne who registered his 22nd half-century in his 90th innings, and his 56-run tenth-wicket partnership with Bharatkumar Dhansukh Solanki (7 runs from 30 deliveries).

Though the Karnataka bowlers, Srinath Arvind (1-5-35-3), skipper R Vinay Kumar (18.4-5.44.2), Abhimanyu Mithun (10-1-49-2) and Hosagivappa Shivalingaiah Sharath (11-0-56-2) were successful in restricting Maharashtra to a small total, their batsmen failed to rise to the occasion and score big.

With the opener, Mayank Agarwal, top scoring 33 runs and small contributions from Robin Uthappa (23), Karun Nair (21), Shreyas Gopal (21*), they ended their first knock with 180 runs on the board, trailing by 32 runs.

Maharashtra bowlers, medium pacers, Anikesh Sanklecha (25.4-6-58-4), Shrikant Mundhe (22-5-54-3) and Nikit Dhumal (16-3-46-30) were successful in keeping the Karnataka batsmen under check and helped their team, take the vital first innings lead.

Backed by a wonderful 81 runs (229m, 150b, 7 fours, 2 sixes) by Shrikant Mundhe, 78 runs by Rahul Tripathi (321m, 196b, 12 fours) and a 96-run seventh-wicket partnership between them (the best partnership for any wicket in the match), Maharashtra scored 260 runs in their second innings.

Karnataka skipper, R Vinay Kumar (27-5-71-4) and Srinath Arvind (24-4-59-3) put in their best efforts to keep a check on the target, they would be required to chase and win the match.

Maharashtra asked Karnatak to score 293 runs in their second innings to make an entry into the knockout stage, but they fell short by 53 runs.

A well made 61 runs (226m, 108b, 6 fours, 2 sixes) by Robin Uthappa, unbeaten 65* runs (183m, 104b, 7 fours) by the wicketkeeper, Chidambaram Gauthm, a 49-run seventh-wicket partnership between Gautam and Vinay Kumar (15) and a 42-run ninth-wicket partnership between Gautam and Srinath Arvind (20), failed to bail the visitors out of the tricky situation.

Maharashtra medium pacers, Nikit Dhumal (25-4-78-5) and Anikesh Sanklecha (20-2-65-4) were successful in preventing the Karnataka batsmen from ‘crossing the line’.

Maharashtra won the game by 53 runs and picked up 6 points. This victory, however, did not provide a knock-out berth to Maharashtra but they succeeded in preventing the defending champions from entering the next stage of the tournament.

For his excellent bowling performance (41-7-124-8) in the match, Nikit Dhumal was adjudged the Player of the Match.

Having won 2 games, lost 1 and drawn 5, out of 8 games, Karnataka, the two-time defending champions, could collect only 24 points and had to be satisfied with the fifth position on the points table.

Karnataka won the games against Rajasthan by 92 runs and against Odisha by 64 runs.

Vidharbha, Bengal, Assam from Group A, Mumbai, Punjab, MP from Group B and Saurashtra, Jharkhand from Group C have entered the knock-out stage.

Elimination rounds begin on 3rd February, 2016.