The marquee contest of the K.S. Subbaiah Pillai Trophy tournament at the Chinnaswamy Stadium on Thursday will have an extra edge.
A cricketing tussle involving Karnataka and Tamil Nadu always had the weight of history and extreme intensity.
This time around, the hunger to quell the rival might be more as Goa's seven-wicket victory over L. Balaji's men on Tuesday, has truly opened up the table.
The tournament, until now a stable two-horse race, might throw up more surprises after the break on Wednesday, but for now Karnataka needs to stick to its winning habit while defending champion Tamil Nadu has to overcome its slump against Goa, and stay in the hunt for the top two spots.
Thursday's matches: Karnataka vs Tamil Nadu; Hyderabad vs Goa; Andhra vs Kerala.
