Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2021: Vidarbha face tough task against resurgent Karnataka in semifinals

Vidarbha
and
Karnataka
entered
the
last-four
in
contrasting
fashions.

While
the
Akshay
Wakhare-led
side
decimated
favourites
Rajasthan
by
nine
wickets,
it
was
Manish
Pandey’s
brilliance
that
helped
Karnataka
overcome
Bengal
via
a
Super
Over
in
their
quarter-final.

Vidarbha’s
in-form
batters
Atharva
Taide,
Ganesh
Satish
and
skipper
Wadkar
would
need
to
continue
their
good
form
to
tame
a
formidable
Karnataka
attack
at
the
Feroz
Shah
Kotla.

After
the
failure
of
Siddesh
Wath,
the
Pritam
Gandhe-coached
Vidarbha
opted
to
open
with
Ganesh
Satish
in
the
quarters
and
the
move
worked
wonders.

But
the
top
three
would
need
equal
support
from
Jitesh
Sharma,
Shubham
Dubey
and
Apoorv
Wankhede,
if
Vidarbha
are
to
post
or
chase
a
big
total.

Bowling
has
been
key
to
Vidarbha’s
success
so
far
in
the
national
T20
championship,
and
again,
the
eight
overs
by
left-arm
orthodox
spinner
Akshay
Karnewar
and
seasoned
off-spinner
Akshay
Wakhare
could
decide
the
game’s
fate.

Even
Atharva
Taide
can
roll
his
arm
over
for
four
overs.
Karnerwar
has
been
a
revelation
and
has
bowled
economical
spells
throughout
the
tournament.

Another
important
cog
in
the
wheel
is
young
right-arm
pacer
Yash
Thakur,
who
has
delivered
so
far.
He
would
need
support
from
pace
colleagues
Darshan
Nalkande
and
Lalit
Yadav.

For
Karnataka,
the
biggest
positive
is
Pandey
regaining
form.
Openers
Rohan
Kadam
and
BR
Sharath
and
middle-order
batters
Karun
Nair,
Aniruddha
Joshi
and
Abhinav
Manohar
would
be
more
than
keen
to
score
big
in
the
marque
clash.

On
their
day,
Karnataka
can
take
any
attack
to
cleansers
and
Vidarbha’s
won’t
be
an
exception.

Their
bowlers,
particularly
spinners
J
Suchith
and
KC
Carippa,
and
the
pacers
led
by
Vijaykumar
Vyshak
would
also
need
to
play
a
vital
role
if
the
team
is
to
make
it
to
the
summit
clash.
Since
it’s
a
day
game,
dew
would
not
be
a
factor
at
all.

Karnataka
vs
Vidarbha
Match
Details

Match
start
time:
1
PM
IST

Live
Channel:
Star
Sports
1
and
Star
Sports
1HD

Live
Streaming:
Disney+HotStar