Cricket

In the absence of regular pace bowlers Prasidh Krishna, Vidhwath Kaverappa, and V. Vyshak, the onus fell upon V. Koushik to lead the Karnataka bowling attack in their Ranji Trophy Elite Group-C match against Bengal. Koushik rose to the occasion, showcasing exceptional skill to record impressive figures of five for 38.Koushik maintained a consistent good length outside off throughout his 25 overs, inducing edges that resulted in five catches behind the stumps. His performance helped Karnataka dismiss Bengal for 301, with Koushik adding two wickets to his overnight tally.In response, Karnataka's batting faced early setbacks before Abhinav Manohar (50 batting) and Shreyas Gopal (23 batting) steadied the ship. Manohar reached his maiden First Class fifty in his second outing, guiding Karnataka to 155 for five at the close of play.Koushik's First Class dream run continues, with the seamer now boasting 80 wickets in 20 matches at an exceptional average of 17.2. His mastery lies in his ability to hit the right lengths consistently, despite not being an express pacer."I have worked a lot on hitting the right lengths. It comes quite naturally to me because I am not a pacer who can bowl 135 or 140-plus kmph. I try to bowl upwards of 120 kmph and try to hit the length. That is what my mastery is," Koushik explained.Manohar, meanwhile, expressed his delight after reaching his maiden First Class fifty. The 30-year-old, making his first steps in red-ball domestic cricket, lifted the spirits of the home team with a big six in the final session.Nikin Jose, who suffered a blow near the eye on Wednesday, did not come out to bat. Kishan Bedare took his place as the concussion substitute and made a handy contribution of 23.

Bengaluru's Ranji Trophy squad has been bolstered with the inclusion of K.V. Aneesh and Abhinav Manohar as reinforcements for their upcoming away match against Bihar. The eight-time champion Karnataka team is in dire need of a victory after collecting only two points from its first two matches.Aneesh, 23, made his debut last season and has played four First-Class games, including the Ranji quarterfinal against Vidarbha where he scored 34 and 40 batting at No.3. Manohar, 30, is yet to make his red-ball debut. The hard-hitting batter has played 36 T20s and seven List A matches for Karnataka and has turned out for Gujarat Titans in the IPL. Most recently, he finished with 550 runs at a strike-rate of 194.35 in the Maharaja Trophy KSCA T20.Pacer Vidwath Kaverappa is not in the squad as he continues his recovery from the shin injury sustained during the Duleep Trophy.The squad:Mayank Agarwal (Capt.), Nikin Jose, Manish Pandey, R. Smaran, K.V. Aneesh, Abhinav Manohar, Shreyas Gopal, Sujay Sateri, Hardik Raj, V. Vyshak, V. Koushik, Luvnith Sisodia, Mohsin Khan, Vidyadhar Patil, Kishan S. Bedare, Abhilash Shetty.