Chennai, Jan 22: Rajasthan have all but clinched the Ranji Trophy title for the second year in a row after an all-round bowling performance helped them scuttle Tamil Nadu for 295 runs on Day 4 of the tournament final. Having gained a 326-run first-innings lead, Rajasthan opted not to enforce the follow on, after which they were 21 for no loss in their second innings.
Having been reduced to 66 for three on Day 3, Tamil Nadu were put under pressure early on Day 4 when Rituraj Singh got rid of K Vasudevdas (25), his third wicket of the innings. A battling 76-run stand ensued between Dinesh Karthik and Ramaswamy Prasanna, but when Prasanna (44) was run out a few overs before lunch, all hopes of a Tamil Nadu fight-back disappeared.
From 159 for the loss of five wickets at lunch, the hosts quickly slid to 167 for seven as Sunny Gupta (6) and Yo Mahesh (0) fell without putting up too much of a struggle. Tamil Nadu captain L Balaji then struck 29 runs in a 60-run stand with Karthik before becoming Rituraj Singh’s fourth victim of the innings.
Karthik, meanwhile, inched his way steadily to the three-figure mark even as wickets fell regularly at the other end. The former India international eventually brought up his century, the third of this Ranji Trophy season, shortly after Balaji was dismissed. Accordingly, TN went into the tea break at 246 for eight with Karthik’s century being the only bright spark in an otherwise dismal performance.
Karthik and Jagannnathan Kaushik denied Rajasthan any further wickets for a good hour after play resumed in the third session. However, medium-pacer Sumit Mathur finally brought an end to the hosts’ innings when he had both batsmen dismissed in the space of two overs in the last hour of the day’s play. Karthik, nevertheless, managed to get to 150 before Mathur rattled his stumps through an inside edge. Kaushik’s defiant 51-ball six-run innings, meanwhile, came to an end when Mathur snared him into playing a hook shot only for Pankaj Singh to complete an easy catch at fine-leg.
Having bowled TN out for 295, the defending champions opted not to enforce the follow on. Vineet Saxena (10*) and Aakash Chopra (10*) safely negotiated the seven overs bowled to them by Tamil Nadu, helping Rajasthan to finish the day at 21 for no loss.
