HUBBALI: Jammu and Kashmir’s entry into its maiden Ranji Trophy final is a heartwarming tale of grit and passion but to grab the title, the underdog side would need to pull off a giant-sized miracle against eight-time former champion Karnataka over the next five days, starting Tuesday.
The tag of favourite is attached to Karnataka not merely because of its rich legacy, but it is a well-earned one after a season in which it consistently rose above opponents, conditions and injuries to key players at various junctures.
Karnataka has dominated teams both at home and away after a stuttering start against Saurashtra at Rajkot, where it conceded a narrow first innings lead to lose points.
However, eternal nemesis Mumbai and tricky newcomers Uttarakhand were dealt away with confidence and ease, indicating the growing belief within the side.
Central to that dominance has been the form of its star batters -- KL Rahul, Karun Nair, Devdutt Padikkal, and Ravichandran Smaran.
It has helped Karnataka overcome a middling season from Mayank Agarwal, who eventually stepped away from captaincy as Devdutt took over the team’s reins.
To his credit, the left-hander has led well both with the bat and his tactically sharp mind.
This strong batting unit, however, will meet its match at the KSCA Stadium here in a capable Jammu and Kashmir bowling attack, led by pacer Auqib Nabi. The team is at the biggest stage of India’s domestic calendar for the first time since making its tournament debut 67 years ago.
Nabi has taken 55 wickets this season and has been the go-to bowler for J&K. The status would not change on a pitch here that is expected to give some assistance to quick bowlers at least initially.
However, limiting Karnataka’s strength to its batting will be naive. It has a varied bowling attack led by India pacer Prasidh Krishna.
The support cast of Vidwath Kaverappa, Vidyadhar Patil, Vysakh Vijaykumar, Shikhar Shetty and Mohsin Khan has done exceedingly well in various situations.
But one man stands head and shoulders above the rest - Shreyas Gopal.
The leg-spinner has taken 46 wickets and made 442 runs at an average of 45 -- golden numbers for an all-rounder.
Shreyas has lifted Karnataka from the brink on more than one occasion this season and he will continue to be a key figure in the title clash as well.
Apart from its overall cricketing strength, Karnataka can also lean on its players’ big-match temperament.
Rahul, Karun, Shreyas and Mayank were a part of the state team that did the Ranji Trophy double in 2013-14 and 2014-15.
The young tyros of then are now the senior statesmen. The quartet can give some sage advice to the younger colleagues on how to tackle the pressure points of a title clash.
Jammu and Kashmir, which has slayed fancied teams like Bengal and Madhya Pradesh en route to the final, does not have such a luxury but it has an experienced campaigner in Paras Dogra as captain.
The 41-year-old Dogra and head coach Ajay Sharma, veterans of many battles, will have to soothe nerves in the dressing room as it gears up to take the final step forward and thwart Karnataka’s designs for a ninth Ranji title.
Top-order batter Shubham Khajuria and left-arm spinner Vanshraj Sharma needed medical attention after the J&K cricketers suffered niggles during the training.