Vidarbha advanced to the Ranji Trophy semi-final with a convincing 127-run victory over Karnataka in Nagpur. They will now face Madhya Pradesh.
The win was secured thanks to an exceptional spell of left-arm spin bowling by Aditya Sarwate early on the final day. The two-time Ranji winner took the crucial wickets of Mayank Agarwal and Manish Pandey to accelerate Karnataka's collapse. Sarwate finished with figures of 4 for 78, bringing his match tally to seven wickets.
Karnataka began the day hoping for a comeback. Despite a promising start at 103 for 1, they still needed 268 runs to win. Although Agarwal had batted well during his 101-run opening partnership with R Samarth on the fourth day, he fell for 70 after being deceived in flight and chipping one to mid-on.
Nikin Jose, who had top-scored with 83 in the first innings, was dismissed for a duck just two balls later. Pandey was then given out lbw by an arm-ball that skidded through and hit his pad. Karnataka quickly slipped from 127 for 1 to 131 for 4.
On the final day surface, Vidarbha utilised Harsh Dubey's left-arm spin to take advantage of the amount of turn on offer. Dubey removed Hardik Raj after a brief 40-run partnership with KV Aneesh. However, replays suggested that the ball may have missed the leg.
The lower-order collapsed without a fight, and two run-outs further added to Karnataka's woes. Towards the end, Vyshak Vijaykumar and Vidwath Kaverappa played cameos that only reduced the margin of defeat.
Karnataka faced an uphill battle after being dismissed for 286, conceding a 174-run lead. Despite Vidarbha's collapse to 196 all out in their second innings, Kaverappa's inspired spell with the old ball on either side of tea on the third day triggered the slide, taking 6 for 61. Despite Vidarbha's collapse to 196 all out in their second innings, Kaverappa's inspired spell with the old ball on either side of tea on the third day triggered the slide, taking 6 for 61. Vidarbha still held the advantage due to the cushion they had built. Despite Vidarbha's collapse to 196 all out in their second innings, Kaverappa's inspired spell with the old ball on either side of tea on the third day triggered the slide, taking 6 for 61.
Dhruv Shorey, who was imported from Delhi to play for Vidarbha, was the top scorer with 57 runs in the second innings. In the first innings, Atharva Taide scored 107 runs and Karun Nair scored 90 runs. The management will be pleased with Taide's performance, especially since they need to find a strong opening combination following Faiz Fazal's retirement after a two-decade-long first-class career.
Vidarbha will face MP, a familiar opponent with a familiar coach, Chandrakant Pandit, who led them to consecutive titles in 2017-18 and 2018-19.