&imwidth=800&imheight=600&format=webp&quality=medium "Ranji Trophy Final: Star Karnataka batters fail on Day 3, J&K on cusp of title-clinching first-inning lead")
Jammu & Kashmir are on the brink of their maiden Ranji Trophy final as they are on the cusp of a first innings lead against Karnataka. Playing on Day 3 of the Ranji Trophy final at the KSCA Hubli Cricket Ground in Hubli, Karnataka’s international stars had an off day with KL Rahul, Karun Nair and Devdutt Padikkal all falling flat. At Stumps on Day 3, Karnataka were 220/5 and still trail by 364 runs with two days to go.
Karnataka’s star batters fail
Having closed the day at 527/6, J&K were bowled out for 584 and gave Karnataka a stern challenge in the first innings. This meant the eight-time champion needed a positive start; however, that was not the case. KL Rahul was dismissed for 13 by Auqib Nabi before captain Devdutt Padikkal (11) was dismissed, making no favours to Karnataka.
Things went from bad to worse for the hosts as they lost Karun Nair and Smaran Ravichandran on back-to-back balls. This meant Karnataka went from 56/1 to 57/4, putting them in a worrying position with more than 500 runs still to be chased down in the first innings.
Shreyas Gopal (27) and Mayank Agarwal, however, put together 105 runs for the fifth wicket and helped their team to bounce back after a poor start. Agarwal made a bright start as he held one end for the hosts as wickets kept on falling at consistent intervals.
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Agarwal remained unbeaten on 130 at Stumps along with wicketkeeper-batter Kruthik Krishna (27). Karnataka ended Day 3 at 220/5 and need to avoid conceding a lead if they have to retain chances of winning the final.
What happens if Ranji Trophy final ends in a draw?
With two days remaining, it is unlikely that the Ranji Trophy final will have an outright winner. It is also likely that J&K could bat on the majority of Day 4 in case they bowl out Karnataka. A lead in the first innings could see J&K in pole position as current rules state – in case of a draw, the team with the first innings lead will be handed over the title.
This means, in case of a draw and assuming J&K take the first innings lead, they can seal their maiden Ranji Trophy title.
To avoid any further ups and downs, J&K might bat the remainder of the Test match while giving Karnataka no chance of any comeback and outright winning the final.
