Vijay Hazare Trophy: Padikkal century helps Karnataka beat B…

Devdutt Padikkal scored an easy 102 (99b, 15×4, 2×6) in the quarter-finals of the Vijay Hazare Trophy at Motibaug Cricket Stadium on Saturday The result kicked off the new year with a five-point win over Baroda.

Karnataka, who were asked to bat first, posted 281 for eight after Padikkal and KV Aneesh (52) laid the foundation for a good total with their 133-run second-wicket partnership.

In reply, Baroda opener Shashwat Rawat (104, 126b, 9×4, 1×6) expertly guided the chase to score his first hundred. He found capable allies in Atit Sheth (56) and Krunal Pandya (30), whose contributions kept the home team in front for most of the chase.

However, pacer V. Koushik (two for 38) and leg-spinner Shreyas Gopal (two for 39) made timely breakthroughs in the middle overs to bring the southern giants back into the game.

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Shreyas removed Sheth and Koushik had Krunal caught by wicketkeeper KV Shirijith, who finished off a brilliant one-hander off the left catch the ball. Their disciplined bowling kept Baroda scoreless for over 10 overs and pushed the requirement rate to close to 10.

Despite a good performance from Rawat and some useful cameos from Bhanu Parnia and Bhargav Butt, Baroda were eliminated in the penultimate over of the tournament.

Needing two-on-seven, Bhargav trudged to the leg side and tried to complete a double to save the goal but was eventually run out, much to the disappointment of hundreds of fans cheering for the hosts.

Early on, Padikkal was at his free-flowing best, clearing the infield with a lofted shot and cutting into the square off the offside. He soon showed off his half-century off 51 balls. From then on, the 24-year-old picked up the pace and hit spinners to all corners of the park.

He made good use of his feet against Mahesh Pithiya to target the leg side, collecting a few boundaries and maximum length. He also performed well, getting into the 90s, bowling Limbani at long-on for his second six and reaching his ninth A-grade ton in just 96 balls.

Limbani and Sheth then helped Baroda clear the run, taking three wickets each. However, Abhinav Manohar, Shreyas Gopal and Prasidh Krishna struck in the climax of the innings A series of boundaries helped their team score 69 points in the last 10 overs. Ultimately, those runs proved decisive in this razor-thin game.

In the other quarter-final, despite Arshin Kulkarni’s 137-ball 107 despite Arshin Kulkarni’s all-out efforts, Maharashtra State defeated Punjab by 70 runs.