Ranji Trophy 2023-24: Karnataka settles for draw with Chandigarh, to face Vidarbha in quarterfinals

Karnataka stepped off the gas to settle for a draw against Chandigarh in its last Ranji Trophy group outing here on Monday.

Karnataka (27 points) finished second in Elite Group ‘C’, and will take on Elite Group ‘A’ topper Vidarbha in the quarterfinal.

Had Karnataka recorded a win, the side would have faced bugbear Saurashtra in the last-eight (at Mysuru). Karnataka’s recent track record against Saurashtra has been poor, having lost four of their last five First Class meetings.

Karnataka’s listless demeanour on the field on Monday led to suggestions that the unit was happy to avert a clash with Saurashtra.

There was no visible push to go for victory. The home team took frequent breaks, which eventually required the umpires to step in.

With Chandigarh at 236 for five, trailing by 60 runs, the sides agreed to a draw an hour ahead of the scheduled close of play.

Vidarbha, of course, cannot be taken lightly. Karnataka will remember the defeat it suffered at the hands of Faiz Fazal’s Vidarbha in the 2017-18 Ranji Trophy semifinal at Kolkata.

Asked if a potential match against Saurashtra played on the mind, Karnataka skipper Mayank Agarwal said, “No. Obviously Saurashtra is a good team. History is history.. People might rely on something like that, but not me. It (knockouts) is a new game, and everyone starts afresh.”

“Honestly the opposition does not matter. We would have liked to top the table and get full points here. We gave our best, but we had a few limitations with injuries,” Mayank said.

For Chandigarh, with no chance of advance to the knockout rounds, this will count as a creditable stalemate.