Ranji Trophy 2019-20 | J&K v KAR - Krishnappa Gowtham seven-fer ends J&K’s dream run
A seven-fer from off-spinner Krishnappa Gowtham helped Karnataka end Jammu and Kashmir’s dream run in the 2019-20 season with a 167-run win in the third quarter-final. Despite missing out on tons in either innings, Krishnamurthy Siddharth was adjudged the Man of the Match for his brilliant batting.
At lunch on the final day with a target of 331 runs to get in two sessions, J&K felt they still had a shot at making the semi-finals. However, this played right into Karnataka’s — and especially Gowtham’s — hands. In their quest for quick runs, the hosts had lost half their side less than an hour into their chase, slipping further to 106 for eight at the end of the 29th over. The damage was all but done. A brief resistance was put up by Arnab Nandi and Umar Nazir Mir, but Gowtham dismissed them both to complete the job.
Earlier in the day, Siddharth managed to outdo his first-innings score of 76 but fell two short of what would’ve been a well-deserved century. Resuming play at 245 for four, the visitors crumbled before lunch and were dismissed for 316. Abid Mushtaq, with six wickets, proved the chief destroyer but ultimately, his efforts would be in vain.
Karnataka will now face Bengal in the second semi-final at Kolkata, starting from February 29.
Brief scores: Karnataka 206 all-out in 69.1 overs (Krishnamurthy Siddharth 76; Parvez Rasool 3-36) & 316 all-out in 106.5 overs (Krishnamurthy Siddharth 98; Abid Mushtaq 6-83) beat J&K 192 all-out in 62.4 overs (Shubham Khajuria 62; Prasidh Krishna 4-42) & 163/10 in 44.4 overs (Shubham Pundir 31; Krishnappa Gowtham 7-54) by 167 runs.
