The Vijay Hazare Trophy knockouts will kick off here on Sunday with three pre-quarterfinal fixtures. Three teams from here will join the toppers of the five Elite groups in the last-eight of the competition.
Karnataka will be the team to watch on Sunday when it takes on Rajasthan at the K.L. Saini Stadium.
Karnataka, who lost the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy final off the last ball to Tamil Nadu, will hope to set things right in the 50-over format.
Reinforcements
The team has been bolstered by the arrival of three key players — opener Devdutt Padikkal, all-rounder K. Gowtham, India-A team members in South Africa, and pacer Prasidh Krishna, who was on national duty for the New Zealand Tests.
The Manish Pandey-led side finished the group stages second after three wins and two losses. The team played well in a tough group except against TN, where it was bowled out for 122.
Speaking ahead of Sunday’s clash Karnataka coach Yere Goud said, “an area we would like to improve is batting which has not been consistent. The arrival of these three players is a huge boost as they bring valuable experience with them.”
Rajasthan on the other hand was in a relatively easier group and was tied with Services on points from four wins. But, a 16-run loss to Services meant the home team now has to play the pre-quarterfinals.
Skipper Deepak Hooda, who joined Rajasthan from Baroda this year, though feels confident ahead of Sunday’s clash, given the familiar conditions. “We have played good cricket so far this year, even in T20s and we are confident against a strong team like Karnataka. Yes, playing at home is an advantage, we know the venues and grounds but what you do on the day is what’s going to matter,” said Hooda.
Also playing
In the other two pre-quarterfinals, Vidarbha will take on Plate group topper Tripura while Madhya Pradesh will clash against Uttar Pradesh. This is also the last chance for domestic players to show their white-ball prowess ahead of next month’s IPL auctions.
Sunday’s fixtures: Pre-quarterfinals: Vidarbha vs Tripura; Karnataka vs Rajasthan; Uttar Pradesh vs Madhya Pradesh .
