Having qualified for the semi-final of yet another Ranji Trophy season, Karnataka has proved why they are touted as one of the leading sides in India’s domestic circuit.
The eight-times Ranji champions had defeated Rajasthan in the quarterfinals while chasing 186 on a tricky pitch at M.Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru. Riding on Karun Nair and Manish Pandey’s 129-run partnership, Karnataka overhauled the target with six wickets in hand. While skipper Pandey scored 87* off 75 balls with 14 boundaries and 2 sixes, Nair dutifully held fort at the other to remain unbeaten on 61 runs.
Ahead of the all-important semi-final against Saurashtra begging on Thursday, Nair, in an exclusive interview with CricketNext, said that he is keen to make another vital contribution for his state side.
“Manish made batting easy for me by taking on the bowlers and I simply told myself that I have to keep batting through at the other end. The counter-attack also changed the minds of the bowlers and they were looking to save runs first,” Nair quoted.
“For me it's important to be able to contribute to Karnataka and like the last game if I can contribute I am happy. It's about getting those chances and when they come by you have to make it count. All I can do is prepare well and look forward to the game and just do my bit in every sense and work hard. Study their bowlers and see how the other team is doing,” he added.
Nair's omission from the home Test series against West Indies last year had created plenty of hue and cry, with cricket fans and experts questioning the decision of the selection committee. The 27-year-old, however, has taken a more philosophical view of the situation.
“Just focus on what you can control and what you can do with your batting and your own game. As long as you're doing the process right there will come a time when everything will fall into place,” Nair remarked.
In the semi-final, Saurashtra will have the services of in-form Cheteshwar Pujara while Karnataka has been bolstered by the return of Mayank Agarwal.
“See in knockout games form goes out of the window and it's about playing according to the situations. We can't just look at one person, we need to get all 20 wickets if want to win. It's all about seizing the important moments and making sure we come out on top. We need to go out there and play to our strengths and potential. If we do that we can beat any team in the country,” Nair said.
“The only thing I'm focused on is winning and contributing to Karnataka and that's the plan and not any further. One needs to go game by game and give a 100 percent at every opportunity. Hopefully in the bargain if I can win games for my team and trophies I'll be really happy,” he concluded.
