Captain Cool Karan Sharma takes UP past Karnataka, into semifinals

It has been a season of firsts for Karan Sharma. He made his first-class debut against Vidarbha before the 23-year-old was named Uttar Pradesh captain in the Ranji Trophy. He was also picked Lucknow Super Giants in the auction and even made his IPL debut.
On Wednesday, he led Uttar Pradesh to their first-ever victory over Karnataka, in 13 attempts, in the Ranji Trophy, and that too in the quarterfinals. UP are now expected to face heavyweights Mumbai in the semifinals, starting June 14. UP had lost four times and drawn nine previous games against Karnataka.

Uttar Pradesh march into the #RanjiTrophy semifinals! 👏 👏
Captain Karan Sharma leads the charge with the bat in the chase as Uttar Pradesh beat Karnataka 5⃣ wickets in #QF3. 👍 👍 #KARvUP | @PaytmBest of Express PremiumPremiumPremiumPremiumPremium
Scorecard ▶️ https://t.co/UDFkFRkMjB pic.twitter.com/AtKOP4paDi
— BCCI Domestic (@BCCIdomestic) June 8, 2022
It was Uttar Pradesh’s bowlers who brought the team back in the game after they bowled out Karnataka for a paltry 114 in their second innings. They needed 213 runs to win the match, and lost both their openers cheaply. Captain Sharma stepped up and along with former India U-19 skipper Priyam Garg (52), added a valuable 59 runs for the third wicket.
Thereafter, there was a mini-collapse, as they lost Garg, Rinku Singh (4) and Dhruv Jurel (9) quickly and were reeling at 114/5 at one stage. But Sharma stayed cool, absorbed the pressure and kept most of the strike to himself and allowed Prince Yadav (33 not out) to settle in. The Uttar Pradesh captain remained unbeaten on 93 and took his team home.
“I just wanted to get my team to the target. I was playing one ball at a time. I was not thinking about the wicket and opponent. I was just focusing on my process,” he told reporters after the match.
When asked about his mindset when they were five down, Sharma replied: “I think pressure is just a state of mind. I, as a batsman, just focus on my process.”
His coach, Phoolchand Sharma, is not surprised his ward’s composure at such a crucial juncture of the match.
“Very calm, composed and hardworking guy. He has been training with me for the past six years, and I have hardly seen him miss any sessions. If selectors have appointed him captain, they must have seen something in him and today he has repaid the faith shown in him,” the coach told The Indian Express.
Man for tough jobs
In his brief career, the Ghaziabad lad has scored two match-winning knocks for his team and both of them have come batting in the fourth innings. His maiden first-class century came in a do-or-die game against Maharashtra in the final league match. Maharashtra had set a target of 359 on the final day. Sharma (116) put on a 142-run stand for the third wicket with Almas Shaukat (100) to set the tone. Rinku Singh scored a counter-attacking 78 not out off 60 balls as Uttar Pradesh chased down the target in 70.1 overs.
“He loves challenges. He has played these kinds of knocks in the U-19 and U-23 cricket so many times. A complete team man who loves to lead from the front. Today’s knock was very uncharacteric his standards. Wo maar ke khelne wala batsman hai, agar itne balls one-dayer mey khel jaaye toh 300 bana de (He is an aggressive batsman. He would have ended up scoring 300 runs in a one-dayer if he had faced 163 balls),” Sharma, who is also the coach of Uttar Pradesh speedster Shivam Mavi and wicketkeeper Dhruv Jurel, said.
He feels the two-and-a-half-month stint with Lucknow Super Giants has helped his ward mature as a cricketer. Karan also echoed his coach’s views and said the discussions with KL Rahul helped him evolve as a cricketer.
“I was looking up to KL Rahul. I had talks with him over the past two months. We talked about batting, mindset, how he carries himself, how he prepares himself and approaches the game,” said Karan.
The match proved to be a humdinger over the three days. As many as 21 wickets fell on Day 2, and there was movement on the surface even on the third day.
“There was definitely movement in the wicket, even in the fourth innings. I was trying to play close to the body, play as late as possible, and look for that odd boundary,” said Karan.
“This win shows the character of our team and how capable we are. It obviously is a good win for us and for the team’s self-belief as well. It is a very young team, and we have been doing well too,” he signed off.
Brief Scores:
Karnataka: 253 & 114 vs Uttar Pradesh: 155 & 213 for 5 (Karan Sharma 93*, Priyam Garg 53; V Vyshak 3/47)