Bengaluru: Captaining the Karnataka team for the fourth season, R. Vinay Kumar has struck it rich with a team which is high on talent, confidence and energy.
His best showing as a leader previously was quarterfinals finish in the last two editions. This time around, the team has entered the semifinals, riding on supreme team effort which has seen the squad win six matches on the trot.
Reflecting on his team’s performance, the 29-year-old Vinay said, “I’m very happy; this was an overall team effort. In the last two years, we’ve failed at the quarterfinal stage. This time, every player on this team wants to play for India. When that is on the mind, then a performance like this is not a tough ask.”
The skipper had a special word of praise for young leggie Shreyas Gopal, “He is a very good prospect for Karnataka. From the day he made his debut he has been taking crucial wickets and hopefully, he’ll do well in the coming games.”
Vinay also chose to play down the sledging which heated up the contest. “It was not sledging. In a situation like this when it is a knockout and not a league match, we need to be in their faces because if we lose, we go home. That was the plan and sledging was not a part of it.”
Going into the semifinals against Punjab, Karnataka will hope for the return of pacer HS Sharath who has been laid low by a shoulder injury.
Speaking about Sharath’s availability for the semifinals, Vinay said, “The physio says he will need four or five days. We are hoping he’ll be fit because it’s good for the team, if not Ronit More will take his place.”
A shy Shreyas when asked to assess his performance said, “I’m feeling very good. Thankfully, the wickets came at the right time. This is the start, we have two more matches, we’ll take one match at a time and hopefully we win the Ranji Trophy. That’s the basic aim and goal.”
