Mumbai: Putting up an all-round show, Karnataka defeated Mumbai by 5 wickets in their Elite Group B Ranji Trophy game here on Sunday, inside two-and-half days. This was Mumbai's second consecutive loss at home, following their defeat against Railways. It is also Karnataka's fourth outright win against Mumbai since the 2013-14 season.

Chasing 126 for an outright win, Karnataka openers R Samarth (34; 2x4) and Devdutt Padikkal (50; 5x4, 2x6) gave the team a solid start and the visitors were racing towards the target as they were 77/0 at lunch. Samarth was batting on 27, while Paddikal was the more aggressive one, being unbeaten on 50. However, post lunch offie Shashank Attarde (4-52) pegged back the visitors by taking two wickets.

He trapped Padikkal in front of the wicket and then dismissed Abhishek Reddy (4) as Karnataka were 84-2. It became 91/3 as Shams Mulani cleaned up Samarth. Debutant Rohan Kadam (21) and skipper Karun Nair (10) brought the side on the cusp of a win when Attarde removed Kadam. Karnataka needed eight more runs.

In the same over, Attarde sent back Nair. Shreyas Gopal (5 not out) and B R Sharath (4 not out) took the side home without any further damage. Earlier, resuming the day on 109/5, Attarde (10) joined overnight batsman Sarfaraz Khan (71 not out). The two added 25-runs for the sixth wicket.

Sarfaraz was playing a responsible knock as he kept on increasing Mumbai's lead, but was falling short of partners. Left-arm pacer Prateek Jain (4-11) grabbed all the wickets in the morning session as he ran through the Mumbai's lower order.

Attarde's resistance came to an end, after he edged a short-pitched ball in the slip cordon with Mumbai at 134/6. From 134/6, Mumbai's innings ended at 149/9.

It was already announced that Prithvi Shaw, who sustained a shoulder injury and was rushed to the National Cricket Academy on Saturday, would not bat in the second essay.

Jain gave a double blow to Mumbai in the 48th over, when he dismissed Tushar Deshpande (6) and Deepak Shetty (0). While Jain cleaned up Deshpande, he forced Shetty to nick.

Last man Royston Dias (0) lasted just six balls as he too was cleaned up by Jain. For Mumbai, apart from Sarfaraz, no other batsman stood tall.

Karnataka had bundled out Mumbai for 194 in the first essay and then taken a slender 24-run lead. The 41-time domestic champions next play Tamil Nadu in Chennai from January 11.

Nair praised his bowlers for restricting Mumbai in the second innings and also said the target was "gettable". He also said in low-scoring game, any lead is important.

He also praised Padikkal and Sharath for their knocks. Mumbai captain Suryakumar Yadav said they failed as a unit. He also said that when he got out Shaw approached him to bat, but they did not take the risk, as he even could not lift his plate.

"When I saw him (Shaw) it was not that good. Even after me getting out, he came upto me and the manager, (saying) that I would love to bat. But we had a word with physio and the coach and it was not looking that good. We did not want to get it more severe. The physio had to take that call... when we he was having his lunch, he was not able to lift his plate," said Surya.

Surya also praised Rahane for taking responsibility and opening the batting in the second innings.

Meanwhile in Vadodara, Baroda thrashed Railways by 99 runs.

Brief Scores: Mumbai 194 and 149/9 (Sarfaraz Khan 71 not out, Shams Mulani 31; Prateek Jain 4-11) vs Karnataka 218 and 129/5 (Devdutt Padikkal 50, R Samarth 34; Shashank Attarde 4-52).

Karnataka 6 points, Mumbai 0 points.

At Vadodara: Baroda 201 and 98 vs Railways 99 and101 (Karn Sharma 38; L Meriwala 6-25, A Sheth 3-43).

Baroda won by 99 runs.

Baroda 6 points, Railways 0 points.

Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.



New Delhi, Aug 13 (PTI): The Enforcement Directorate said on Wednesday it has arrested a woman, who claims to be an actor and a cosmetologist, under the anti-money laundering law in a case of alleged fraud and misrepresentation.

The agency said the purported links of the woman, Sandeepa Virk, with a Reliance Group executive, Angarai Natarajan Sethuraman (President, Corporate Affairs), are also under its scanner. Sethuraman, in a statement, denied any connection with Virk or any transactions related to her.

Virk was taken into custody under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) on Tuesday after searches were conducted against her and her associates in Delhi and Mumbai over the last two days.

A special court sent her to the ED's custody till August 14, the agency said. The woman claims to be the owner of a skin care products selling website named hyboocare.com, which the ED claimed was a "front" for money laundering.

She and her associates are being probed for allegedly exerting undue influence through "misrepresentation" and "defrauding" individuals by soliciting money under false pretences.

According to an Instagram ID of Virk, she is an actor and entrepreneur and the founder of the said website.

The federal agency said in a statement that the woman was also "in touch with" Sethuraman, former director of erstwhile Reliance Capital Limited.

She was communicating with him regarding "illegal liaisoning", the ED claimed, adding that the searches at Sethuraman's residence "confirmed" these allegations.

"Besides, diversion of funds for personal benefit has also been unearthed during the course of the search action," it said.

The ED alleged that public money worth about Rs 18 crore belonging to Reliance Commercial Finance Limited (RCFL) was disbursed to Sethuraman in 2018 by "flouting" prudent lending norms.

The funds were lent under terms that allowed a deferment of the principal amount as well as the interest, with multiple waivers granted and no due diligence conducted, it said.

The ED claimed that besides this, a home loan of Rs 22 crore was provided by Reliance Capital Limited by "violating" the prudential norms. "A large part of these loans are seen to have been eventually siphoned off and remained unpaid," it alleged.

Sethuraman, in a statement, dismissed the allegations as "baseless". He denied any connection with Virk or any transactions related to her.

Detailing about Virk's web portal, the agency said it purportedly sold FDA-approved beauty products. However, the ED said the products listed on the website have been found to be non-existent and the portal lacks a user registration option and is plagued by persistent payment gateway issues.

A scrutiny of the website uncovered minimal social-media engagement, an inactive WhatsApp contact number and an absence of transparent organisational details, all of which reinforce the finding of "non-genuine" commercial activity, the ED claimed.

"These factors, including limited product range, inflated pricing, false claims of FDA approval and technical inconsistencies, indicate that the website serves as a front for laundering funds," it said.

Another social media-hosted bio data of the woman said she is a certified cosmetologist.

The ED said several "incriminating" documents were seized during the searches and the statement of a man named Farrukh Ali, stated to be an associate of Virk, was recorded.

The money-laundering case stems from an FIR lodged by the Punjab Police.

Sethuraman said that the home loan he received from Reliance Capital was granted following due process and was secured by the property offered as collateral.