Devdutt Padikkal will lead Karnataka in the Ranji Trophy 2025-26 match against Punjab.
Following a great run in the recently concluded Vijay Hazare Trophy, Devdutt Padikkal is set to lead Karnataka in the final league-stage match of the Ranji Trophy 2025-26.
The southpaw will take over the reins from Mayank Agarwal for their clash against Punjab, starting on January 29. Apart from it, the team is set for four more changes in their squad for the last group-stage fixture. Karun Nair, who was continuing a rich vein of form, has been sidelined due to an injury.
He had scored 614 runs in eight innings of the tournament so far. On the other hand, Abhinav Manohar has been dropped following a lean patch of runs. However, amidst the setbacks, the returns of KL Rahul and Prasidh Krishna will strengthen Karnataka’s squad.
Notably, Karnataka is coming off a thrashing 217-run defeat against the second-placed, Elite Group B side, Madhya Pradesh. Padikkal also stumbled in his red-ball return after enjoying a stellar run in India’s domestic one-day tournament.
He bagged ducks in both innings of the fixture as the team failed to cross the 200-run mark twice against Rajat Patidar and Co. Karnataka were bundled out for only 191 and 144 runs, respectively.
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Coming on the back of a trouncing loss, the eight-time winners would look to script a massive comeback in the last group-stage fixture, eyeing a spot in the Ranji Trophy 2025-26 quarter-finals. They are currently seated third in the table with 21 points, just behind Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh.
A win against the sixth-placed Punjab will secure Karnataka’s quarter-finals berth in the tournament, irrespective of the result between the current top-two sides. Meanwhile, Saurashtra will also be in contention to grab a spot in the top eight. They are currently placed fourth in the table with 19 points.
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