Shreyas Gopal scores ton as Karnataka stay on top of Mumbai

Nagpur: Shreyas Gopal compiled his fourth hundred in first class cricket, an unbeaten 150, as Karnataka piled on a massive first innings total of 570 to take a huge 397-run lead against Mumbai in the Ranji Trophy quarter final.

The 24-year-old Bengaluru-born leg-spin bowling all rounder faced 274 balls and struck 11 fours to become the lone centurion in the Karnataka first innings that saw four other batsmen cross the 50-run mark, including no. 11 Arvind Sreenath (51), without reaching three figures.

Facing an imposing task of neutralising the deficit and setting a challenging target for Karnataka, 41-time winners Mumbai floundered for the second time in the match to close day three of the five-day game at 120 for 3 in 44 overs with Suryakumar Yadav making a fighting, unconquered 55 in 115 balls. Giving Yadav company at close was Akash Parkar (3).

Mumbai, trailing Karnataka by 277 runs with seven wickets in hand, face a Herculean task to set a challenging fourth innings score for eight-time champions to chase over the last two days of the game at the VCA Stadium in Jamtha.

The day began with Karnataka already sitting pretty at 395 for 6 with skipper Vinay Kumar on 31 and Shreyas Gopal on 80.

Debutant Shivam Malhotra sent back Kumar quickly this morning, but Mumbai were frustrated by next batsman Krishnappa Gowtham (38) who put on 73 runs for the eighth wicket with Shreyas and later last man Arvind who used the long handle togood effect.

Shreyas and Arvind, joining hands with the score at 478, did not get separated till they added 92 runs against the insipid Mumbai attack before Malhotra ended the stand as well as the innings with the scalp of the no. 11 batsman who clouted 1 six and 9 fours in his 41-ball knock.

For Mumbai, Shivam Dube did not add any wicket to his five-wicket haul of yesterday, Malhotra finished with three wickets while pacer Dhawal Kulkarni ended up with 2 for 105.

The Mumbai second innings was off to a rocky start with openers Prithvi Shaw (14) and Jay Bista (20) dismissed cheaply for the second time in the match.

From 34 for 2, Yadav and Akhil Herwadkar (26) revived the inning with a partnership worth 70 before the latter flicked a short ball from offie Gowtham to short mid-wicket fielder to depart just before stumps.

Brief scores: Mumbai 173 and 120 for 3 (S Yadav not out 55, A Parkar not out 3; K Gowtham 2 for 30) v Karnataka 570 all out (M Agarwal 78, K Abbas 50, C M Gautam 79, S Gopal 150 not out, S Arvind 51; Shivam Malhotra 3 for 97, Shivam Dube 5 for 98).