Karnataka Triumphs Over Vidarbha in High-Stakes Vijay Hazare Trophy Final by 36 Runs

Synopsis

In a thrilling finale of the 2024-25 Vijay Hazare Trophy, Karnataka defeated Vidarbha by 36 runs, thanks to Smaran Ravichandran's century and key contributions from his teammates. Despite valiant efforts from Dhruv Shorey, Vidarbha fell short in their chase, highlighting Karnataka's dominance in the match.

Key Takeaways

Smaran Ravichandran scored a crucial 101 for Karnataka.
Karnataka posted a total of 348/6 in their innings.
Vidarbha's chase ended at 312 runs.
Dhruv Shorey made a commendable 110 for Vidarbha.
The match showcased excellent batting performances from both sides.

Vadodara, Jan 18 (NationPress) Smaran Ravichandran's remarkable century (101) along with significant contributions from Krishnan Shrijith (78) and Abhinav Manohar (79) led Karnataka to victory in the 2024-25 Vijay Hazare Trophy, defeating Vidarbha by 36 runs at Kotambi Stadium on Saturday.

Vidarbha won the toss and chose to field first, managing an early breakthrough when Devdutt Padikkal (8) edged a delivery from Yash Thakur in the sixth over. Captain Mayank Agarwal (32) and KV Aneesh (21) navigated the initial overs before both were dismissed swiftly.

Smaran and Shrijith then formed a formidable 160-run partnership for the fourth wicket, placing Karnataka in a commanding position.

Although Shrijith fell just short of a hundred, Manohar's explosive performance further distanced Vidarbha from the chase.

The right-handed all-rounder scored 79 runs off merely 42 balls, boasting a strike rate of 188.09, punctuated by 10 boundaries and 4 sixes.

Karnataka concluded their innings at 348/6, setting a daunting target for Vidarbha.

“The plan was to take the game deep, and I’m relieved it worked out well today. Shrijith and I have batted together frequently, and we recognized the pitch was excellent for batting. We aimed to apply pressure by accumulating runs,” said Smaran, who earned the Player of the Match title.

Dhruv Shorey's valiant century (110) and Harsh Dubey's rapid innings (63) were insufficient for Vidarbha to mount a comeback, as they fell short by 36 runs.

Captain Karun Nair (27) and Shorey formed a 57-run partnership before Nair was dismissed by Prasidh Krishna.

The middle order of Vidarbha faltered, with Yash Kadam (15), Jitesh Sharma (34), Shubham Dubey (8), and Apoorv Wankhade (12) falling at regular intervals.

Although Dubey finished strong with boundaries at a strike rate of 210, his efforts were in vain without adequate support.

“We still have a long season ahead and many matches to win. We gifted them 20-25 extra runs, and though we began well, losing wickets consistently made it challenging. It was an excellent game; congratulations to Karnataka,” stated Nair post-match.

Brief Scores: Karnataka 348/6 (Smaran Ravichandran 101, Abhinav Manohar 79; Darshan Nalkande 2-67) defeated Vidarbha 312/10 in 48.2 overs (Dhruv Shorey 110, Harsh Dubey 63; Vasuki Koushik 3-47) by 36 runs.