2017-18 Ranji Trophy Round-up, Round 7, Day 4: K Gowtham stars for table-toppers Karnataka
Group A:
Karnataka continued their domination and topped their group as they crushed Railways by 209 runs in their final group stage match.
Karnataka declared their innings at 275-4, thus giving Railways 377 runs to chase in one day. Krishnappa Gowtham was the star as he picked up seven wickets to rip through the opposition batting line-up.
In the other match, Hyderabad salvaged a draw against Delhi by scoring 442 runs in the second innings, with the loss of eight wickets. Akshath Reddy and Rohit Rayudu scored centuries while Delhi's Vikas Mishra picked up five wickets.
However, Delhi managed to qualify for the quarter-finals along with Karnataka.
Brief Scores:
Karnataka 434 & 275/4d def. Railways 333 & 167 by 209 runs
Delhi 415 drew Hyderabad (India) 205 & 442/8
Group B:
Defending champions Gujarat earned an astounding victory against Jharkhand by ten wickets to top their group. By doing so, they ended with 34 points - the highest by a team this season.
Beginning the day at 106-2 after following-on, Jharkhand crumbled and were bowled out for 183. Hardik Patel was the pick of the bowlers with four wickets to his name.
Gujarat required just 15 runs to win and achieved the victory in just 10 balls.
Kerala, too, qualified for the knockout stage after comprehensively defeating Haryana by an innings and eight runs. This is the first time they have reached the quarter-final stage (not considering the plate league) in Ranji Trophy.
In the other match, Saurashtra and Rajasthan played out a draw in an inconsequential match.
Brief Scores:
Gujarat 411 & 16/0 def. Jharkhand 242 & 183
Kerala 389 def. Haryana 208 & 173
Saurashtra 534 drew Rajasthan 275 & 394/7
Group C:
Madhya Pradesh earned a seven-wicket victory against Odisha on the final day to qualify for the knockout stage.
Captain Devendra Bundela led the chase and scored a half-century to take his side to the quarters.
In the other match, Baroda added salt to Tamil Nadu's wound and earned a victory against them. Last year's semifinalists did not manage a single win in their group stage matches and were ousted before the start of the round itself.
Brief Scores:
Baroda 309 & 197 def. Tamil Nadu 274 & 130
Madhya Pradesh 388 & 111/3 def. Odisha 147 & 350
Group D:
Vidarbha, who had earned a first-innings lead against Himachal Pradesh topped the group after managing a draw.
In the other match, Bengal's first-innings lead against Goa meant their qualification into the quarter-finals along with Vidarbha.
In the other match, Punjab almost pulled off a spectacular victory against Services but ended up drawing the game. However, even a win wouldn't have seen them qualify for the quarters.
Brief Scores:
Bengal 379 & 334/5d drew Goa 310 & 86/2
Punjab 645/6d & 94/5 drew Services 315 & 458
Himachal Pradesh 353 & 323/8 drew Vidarbha 456
Quarter-final matches (Matches will be played from December 7-December 11):
Karnataka v Mumbai
Delhi v Madhya Pradesh
Gujarat v Vidarbha
Kerala v Bengal