Always wanted to start with a bang, says Karn
Striking a maiden 10-wicket haul and that too in the season opener is a big boost for leg spinner Karn Sharma, who terms this achievement a big motivation ahead of a hectic domestic season where a good performance can do wonders.
“Everyone aims for a good beginning of the season, and I have it in the opener itself. This would keep me motivating to keep doing well through the season,” Karn told HT soon after achieving the mark in his 58th first-class match while playing for India Red against India Green in the Duleep Trophy here.
“I always wanted to start with a bang. This is my second season with pink ball and I don’t find any problem executing my game plan with this ball too,” said Karn, who had four wickets against Australia in 2014 in a one-off Test match so far.
The Railway’s bowler accepted that chasing 474 to win in the second innings was a hurricane task, but Karun Nair did his best to save the match for the India Green.
“If had been there for 15-20 overs further, the result of the match could have been different. For sure his (Nair) wicket was best one for me today,” added Sharma, who picked six wickets in the second innings.
Meanwhile, India Green skipper Parthiv Patel admitted that team’s deficit in the first innings made all the difference. He refused to accept that pink ball and that too under lights made any difference for his team.
“The ball and lights were good. And even the pitch was alright. If on a fourth day in the fourth innings if you can score 300, then it speaks for the wicket. Just that there were a few spots on the pitch for off-spinners which they could exploit,” said Patel.
Patel also said that a century just before the four-day games against New Zealand ‘A’ was a big boost for the confidence of Nair.