Devdutt, Smaran shine with fifties as Karnataka storm into Vijay Hazare Trophy final

Karnataka secured their spot in the Vijay Hazare Trophy final with a five-wicket victory over Haryana in Vadodara on Wednesday. The win was largely thanks to the impressive performances of Devdutt Padikkal and Ravichandran Smaran, who expertly navigated a challenging pitch and scored crucial fifties.
Karnataka's chase of 238 got off to a rocky start when skipper Mayank Agarwal was dismissed in the first over, trapped lbw by Anshul Kamboj's low delivery. However, Devdutt (86 off 113 balls, 8x4, 1x6) and Smaran (76 off 94 balls, 3x4, 3x6) steadied the ship with a 128-run partnership for the third wicket.

The four-time champions ultimately reached their target in 47.2 overs, finishing with 238 for five. Despite the comfortable margin of victory, the chase was not without its challenges.
After Agarwal's early departure, KV Aneesh struggled to find his rhythm, taking 14 balls to get off the mark. In contrast, Devdutt and Smaran showcased their skills in tackling the slow and variable bounce of the pitch.

Devdutt, coming off a century against Baroda in the quarterfinals, paced his innings brilliantly and minimized risks. He played late to counter the spin, with most of his boundaries coming through the point or fine leg region.
Smaran, too, started cautiously but grew in confidence after reaching his fifty. He took on spinners Nishant Sindhu and Amit Rana, hitting them for a six each.
Devdutt fell to Sindhu while trying to close out the chase, and Smaran was bowled by the off-spinner. However, by that point, Karnataka needed just 13 runs for victory.
Earlier, Haryana's batting was kept in check by Karnataka's bowlers, led by left-arm pacer Abhilash Shetty (4/34), leg-spinner Shreyas Gopal (2/36), and pacer Prasidh Krishna (2/40). Himanshu Rana (44) and skipper Ankit Kumar (48) added 70 runs for the second wicket, but no one capitalised on the foundation they laid.
A 39-run partnership between 10th wicket pair Anuj Thakral and Amit Rana helped Haryana reach a respectable total of 237 for nine. Karnataka will now face either Vidarbha or Maharashtra in the title clash.