(City) Bad light plays spoilsport during Ranji match

Tribune News Service

Jammu, February 20

Bad weather played a spoilsport on Thursday during the much-awaited Ranji Trophy 2019-20 quarterfinal clash between hosts J&K and the star-studded Karnataka team at the GGM Science College Hostel Ground here.

Only six overs were bowled by J&K today, while Karnataka was struggling at 14 for the loss of two wickets at the stumps on the opening day.

Ravikumar Samarth (5) and Devdutt Paddikal (2) were the two batsmen back in the pavilion as J&K bowlers — Aquib Nabi and Mujtaba Yousuf — took one wicket each.

Karun Nair (4) and Krishnamurthy Siddharth (0) were at the crease when the umpires decided to call off the day’s play due to bad light.

Earlier, the toss was also delayed due to bad light. Karnataka won the toss, opting to bat first. The match was scheduled to start at 9.30 am but no play was possible before lunch. It was a disappointment for a number of cricket fans. They started arriving at the venue since early morning to watch their favourite stars in action but were in for a disappointment.

The key to the J&K team’s success has been the prolific run-making from Abdul Samad and Shubham Kharjuria, both of whom have scored more than 500 runs. Karnataka on the other hand has ended the group stage at the third position in the Elite Group A and B. J&K were the toppers in their league table but ended up losing their last group stage match against Haryana.