Thilak Naidu, Sunil Joshi prop up Karnataka innings

Mysore, Dec 1 (UNI) An unfinished seventh wicket stand of 119 between keeper Thilak Naidu (84 batting) and allrounder Sunil Joshi (36) helped Karnataka reach a comfortable 301 for six against Haryana on the opening day of the Ranji Trophy Elite Group 'A' encounter here today.

Hard hitting opener Robin Uthappa (56, 10x4) and C Raghu (62, 8x4) were the other notable scorers for Karnataka, while Haryana medium pacer Joginder Sharma, who rattled the hosts in the morning with a two-wicket burst, returned with a haul of 3 for 73.

Skipper Yere Goud, playing for his home State after a gap of 13 years, won the toss and elected to bat. Joginder struck telling blows, removing opener Rowland Barrington and Bharat Chipli to reduce Karnataka to two for 35. However, Robin and Raghu added an invaluable 109 for the third wicket to consolidate the Karnataka innings.

Three quick wickets at this stage, with Sunny Singh removing Robin, Joginder trapping Raghu in front and Sumit Sharma sending back Goud with a brilliant throw, pushed Karnataka to a corner.

However, Thilak and Joshi resurrected the hosts' innings by taking the score past the 300 mark. The duo added 119 runs in 170 balls, staying together for exactly two hours so far.

Brief scores: Karnataka I innings 301/6 (Robin Uthappa 56, C Raghu 62, Thilak Naidu 84 batting, Sunil Joshi 36 batting, Joginder Sharma 3/72) vs Haryana.

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