Ranji Trophy: Saurashtra beat Karnataka by 5 wickets to move into finals
Bengaluru, Jan 28 : The Cheteshwar Pujara juggernaut continued to roll and the 'Run Machine' steered Saurashtra to the Ranji Trophy finals with a five-wicket victory over Karnataka in the Ranji Trophy semi-finals here Monday.
Saurashtra will now meet defending champions Vidarbha in the final of the national championship to be played from February 3-7 in Jaipur.
This is the third time that Saurashtra will be playing the finals.
Pujara remained unbeaten at 131 off 266 balls and added 214 runs with senior player Sheldon Jackson (100) to anchor another successful run-chase for Saurashtra.
Needing 55 runs on the final day, it was a mere formality as Jackson duly completed his 16th first-class century.
Although they had seven wickets in hand, Pujara didn't take any undue risks and it took 17.4 overs for Saurashtra to score the remaining 55 runs.
Vinay Kumar (3/75), who bowled his heart out and was unlucky after Pujara was ruled not out by the on-field umpire despite a clear edge when he was on 32, got the consolation wicket of Jackson. However, the match was as good as over by then.
Pujara's innings had 17 boundaries while Jackson struck 15 hits to the fence.
The best part about Pujara's innings was his intensity. After his most defining away tour for India, the 31-year-old looked like continuing from his century in Melbourne.
His sequence of scores since the start of the Australia series now stands 123, 71, 24, 4, 106, 0, 193, 11, 67 not out, 45, 131 not out.
Pujara did get a couple of lucky reprieves in this match but it could be blamed on the umpiring standards which have been below par during the season.
Umpire Saiyed Khalid, who had a forgettable outing, is expected to get negative marking and will certainly be demoted to a lower grade during the next season if well placed sources in the BCCI are to be believed.
His howler did affect Karnataka's chances but to Pujara's credit, the controversy hardly perturbed him and it was business as usual for him.
His zen like approach was at a different level, his only mission being to take Saurashtra into the summit round.
A testimony to his unflappable temperament was that the "cheater cheater" boos by the home team supporters didn't unsettle him. In the end, it was 'Mission Accomplished' for Indian cricket's 'Man of the Moment'.
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.
Punishment for those disrupting assembly proceedings, warns Speaker UT Khader
Belagavi: Speaker U.T. Khader on Friday warned that members who disrupt Assembly proceedings by talking in their seats during debates will be made to sit in the House for an entire day as a disciplinary measure.
The warning came after the Question Hour, when Deputy Leader of the Opposition Arvind Bellad was permitted to initiate a discussion on the development of North Karnataka.
At this point, expelled BJP MLA Basanagouda Patil Yatnal objected, stating that he had been seeking a debate for the past three days but had not been given an opportunity.
ALSO READ: IndiGo board ropes in external aviation expert for flight disruption probe
Responding to the objection, Speaker Khader said Bellad had already been granted permission and assured Yatnal that he would be allowed to speak at the next opportunity. He noted that even as a serious discussion was underway, several MLAs were speaking among themselves with their microphones on, disrupting the proceedings.
Expressing displeasure over the conduct of members, Khader likened the situation to football, where players receive red, yellow, or white cards for violations. Similarly, he said, the Assembly issues warning cards to members who disturb the House. If they fail to correct themselves despite repeated warnings, they would be required to remain seated in the Assembly hall for a full day as punishment, he stated.
