Ranji Trophy Semi-Final: Karnataka vs Saurashtra; Preview, Team News, Lineup, Road to Semi-Finals, TV Details

A battle between two familiar foes awaits at the Chinnaswamy Stadium as Karnataka host Saurashtra in the Ranji Trophy Semi-Final tie that starts on Wednesday (February 8).

Karnataka vs Saurashtra Preview:

Karnataka will be hosting the match by the virtue of them finishing as group winners. They won their quarter-final tie against Uttarakhand quite emphatically, as Shreyas Gopal was the star with the bat. Youngster Nikin Jose has also done extremely well, scoring 420 runs so far this season. With a fearsome bowling attack comprised of Vidwath Kaverappa, Vyshak Vijaykumar and co, the southern giants will be hoping to emulate their previous performance against Saurashtra.

Saurashtra overcame Punjab in the quarter-finals after beating them by 71 runs. Despite the absence of spearhead Jaydev Unadkat, they have done well in the competition thus far. Parth Bhut stepped up in the last match and stole the show with his all-round efforts. Saurashtra will be taking confidence from the fact that they have won the last three matches out of 5 against Karnataka. A team with talents galore in every department, Saurashtra is regarded as one of the finest in domestic cricket, and we can expect an enthralling game between the two sides.

Karnataka vs Saurashtra Team News:

Sharath BR will be missing the tie due to illness and Nihal Ullal has replaced him in the squad. A lot will depend on Karnataka's veteran duo Mayank Agarwal and Manish Pandey, who have performed in patches for their home state in the domestic tournaments.

Saurashtra have no such injury issues and will be going with their full team. They will be missing their captain Jaydev Unadkat though who is on national duty. Cheteshwar Pujara and Ravindra Jadeja will also be missing for the Western Indian outfit.

Karnataka vs Saurashtra Probable Starting XI:

Karnataka: Ravikumar Samarth, Mayank Agarwal (c), Devdutt Padikkal, Nikin Jose, Manish Pandey, Shreyas Gopal, Srinivas Sharath (wk), Krishnappa Gowtham, M Venkatesh, Vidwath Kaverappa, Vyshak Vijaykumar

Saurashtra: Harvik Desai (wk), Snell Patel, Vishvaraj Jadeja, Sheldon Jackson, Arpit Vasavada (c), Chirag Jani, Prerak Mankad, Dharmendrasinh Jadeja, Parth Bhut, Chetan Sakariya, Yuvrajsinh Dodiya

Karnataka vs Saurashtra Last Meet:

The last meet between these two sides was back in 2020 in the league phase. Saurashtra piled on 581/7 courtesy of an outstanding 248 by CHeteshwar Pujara. Karnataka miraculously evaded an outright loss despite being battered through the course of the four days.

Karnataka Road to Semi-Finals:

Opponent	Result
Services	Draw, Secured 1st Innings Lead
Puducherry	Won by an innings and 7 runs
Goa	Draw, Secured 1st Innings Lead
Chandigarh	Won by 7 wickets
Rajasthan	Won by 10 wickets
Kerala	Draw, Secured 1st Innings Lead
Jharkhand	Won by 9 wickets
Uttarakhand (QF)	Won by an innings and 281 runs

Saurashtra Road to Semi-Finals:

Opponent	Result
Assam	Draw, Secured 1st Innings Lead
Maharashtra	Draw, Secured 1st Innings Lead
Mumbai	Won by 48 runs
Delhi	Won by an innings and 214 runs
Hyderabad	Won by an innings and 57 runs
Andhra Pradesh	Lost by 150 runs
Tamil Nadu	Lost by 59 runs
Punjab (QF)	Won by 71 runs

Karnataka vs Saurashtra Where to Watch:

The Ranji Semi-Final between Karnataka and Saurashtra will be broadcast live on Star Sports Network from 9.30 am on Wedensday (February 8) onwards. Indian viewers can also live-stream the match through DInsey+ Hotstar App and Website.