Ranji Trophy 2016-17: Early finish at Vizag crops up questions about surface

The Ranji Trophy 2016-17 experienced one of its few hindrances in recent times with many slamming the Vizag wicket following the conclusion of the Karnataka v Tamil Nadu match at the venue. The quarter-final saw Tamil Nadu crush Karnataka by seven wickets as the match was concluded in a matter of two days and barely a 148.2 overs as well and two of the innings total’s churning out scores under a hundred runs.

This also is not the first time that the curator of the Vizag wicket has been brought into the spotlight. Earlier, Assam coach Sunil Joshi had lashed out at him following his side’s loss in under three days of play. The irony of the ordeal is that Joshi was a player for Karnataka, the team that are currently screaming foul play in the same venue as well.

However, in spite of the loss and the disappointment that comes with it, the Karnataka skipper R Vinay Kumar went on to state that the encounter was lost in the toss for the most part as well as opting not to blame the batsmen for the defeat.

“It was a crucial toss to lose. I don’t want to blame our batsmen because Tamil Nadu bowled well. There was help for the bowlers but a couple of run-outs did not help our cause,” Vinay Kumar, Karnataka captain was quoted by Mumbai Mirror.

Hrishikesh Kanitkar, the coach of Tamil Nadu, praised his bowlers. “We’re happy with the result and we are looking forward to the semi-finals.”

22-year old K Vignesh, who was eventually adjudged the man of the match went on to state his happiness following the win. “We didn’t know the pitch is little conducive (for the bowlers),” Vignesh said after the game. “Today, the plan in the morning was to bat really well and post a good score and then bowl in the second innings. Being a knockout game, we couldn’t relax at any point of time. So we had to bowl really well in both innings.”