Karnataka pressed for an outright win after forcing Rajasthan to follow on in the Ranji Trophy Super League Group ‘A' match at the Field Club ground here on Saturday.
Left-arm spinner K.P. Appanna, playing his first Ranji match after two years, led the Karnataka attack with a four-wicket haul, while paceman Abhimanyu Mithun, who consistently tested the batsmen outside the off-stump, captured three valuable wickets to restrict Rajasthan to 255 in its first innings.
The home side, 51 for no loss in its second innings, was still trailing by 317 runs at the draw of stumps on the third day. Vaibhav Deshpandey (27), dropped thrice off Mithun, and Vineet Saxena (21) were on guard to thwart the visiting team's progress.
Rajasthan suffered because of the poor shot selection of its batsmen and a disciplined performance by the Karnataka bowlers in the first essay. The host, starting the day at 49 for two, landed itself in a soup after losing Vineet Saxena at the score of 65.
Ashok Menaria (57, 81b, 143m, 9x4) and R.R. Parida (20) ensured a trouble free journey for the side until left-arm seamer Sreenath Arvind uprooted Parida's off-stump.
Menaria played some spectacular shots, including consecutive boundaries off Mithun on a couple of occasions, to lead Rajasthan's fightback. However, he spoilt all his good work by gifting his wicket to Appanna.
Robin Bisht (47, 125b, 3x4, 1x6) and Rohit Jhalani (45, 85b, 8x4) offered some resistance by adding 82 runs for the seventh wicket. Appanna, maintaining a tight line, removed Jhalani and Deepak Chahar of consecutive deliveries.
The scores: Karnataka — 1st innings: 623.
Rajasthan — 1st innings: V. Deshpandey c Gautham b Vinay 0, V. Saxena c Gautham b Mithun 28, H. Kanitkar c. Pandey b Mithun 17, A. Menaria c Vinay b Appanna 57, R.R. Parida b Arvind 20, R. Bisht c Pandey b Mithun 47, M. Khatri c Gautham b Vinay 8, R. Jhalani lbw b Appanna 45, D. Chahar lbw b Appanna 0, S. Mathur lbw b Appanna 12, P. Singh (not out) 2; Extras (b-9, lb-2, nb-8): 19; Total (in 77.1 overs): 255.
Fall of wickets: 1-0, 2-31, 3-65, 4-129, 5-135, 6-146, 7-228, 8-228, 9-245.
Karnataka bowling: Vinay Kumar 14-2-53-2, Mithun 18-3-66-3, Arvind 17-5-42-1, Verma 9-1-32-0, Binny 3-0-16-0, Appanna 16.1-6-35-4.
Rajasthan — 2nd innings: V. Deshpandey (batting) 27, V. Saxena (batting) 21; Extras (lb-1, nb-2): 3; Total (no loss, 27 overs): 51.
Karnataka bowling: Vinay Kumar 7-1-16-0, Mithun 7-4-6-0, Appanna 7-3-6-0, Arvind 3-0-12-0, Satish 2-1-5-0, Verma 1-0-5-0.
