Ranji Trophy: Karnataka sitting pretty

At the end of the second day of the Ranji Trophy encounter against Rajasthan, Karnataka amassed an overall lead of 304 runs.

Karnataka skipper Vinay Kumar reached the 400-wicket mark in first-class cricket.

Pacers Vinay Kumar and S. Arvind ran circles around the Rajasthan line-up to put Karnataka in a commanding position here on Monday.

At the end of the second day of their Ranji Trophy encounter, Karnataka amassed an overall lead of 304 runs.

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Rajasthan did well in the morning session to take the final four Karnataka wickets in 9.1 overs. Karnataka was bowled out for 374, with left-arm pacer Tanvir ul-Haq recording his maiden first-class five-wicket haul.

From here on, Karnataka called the shots. Skipper Vinay — he reached the 400-wicket mark in first-class cricket — and Arvind used skill and intellect to plot the downfall of the opposition. The duo induced the edges at will, and were helped along by poor shot selection.

Despite gaining a 226-run first innings lead, Karnataka decided not to enforce the follow-on. The team management believed that it was best to give their bowlers a breather.

R. Samarth (46 batting) and K. L. Rahul (32 batting) were only too happy to have a hit, taking Karnataka to 78 for no loss at close.