Karnataka is well on their way to claiming a Ranji Trophy win after reducing Punjab to 55 runs in their first innings. R Smaran led the charge for Karnataka with an unbeaten 83 off 100 balls, bringing the team to 199/4 at stumps,

Skipper Gill’s poor effort had a cascading effect on Punjab’s innings as they crumbled for a paltry 55 in their first essay. Smaran, who used all his technical nous, then made an unbeaten 83 (100b, 12x4s, 1×6) as Karnataka reached 199 for 4 when stumps were drawn on Day 1.

Rohit Sharma made his much-anticipated return to domestic cricket after a decade, but his comeback was cut short in a disappointing fashion. Dismissed for just 3 runs by Jammu & Kashmir’s Umar Nazir Mir,

The return of India’s incumbent Test batsmen to the Ranji Trophy turned out to be a calamitous affair. Between Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rishabh Pant and Shubman Gill, they lasted only 45 balls and logged in merely 12 runs.