Ranji Trophy 2026-27: Spinners, Rohan Patil hand Karnataka massive advantage against Assam on Day 1

Rohan Patil scored at more than run-a-ball during his 89 that laid the platform for Karnataka on Day 1. | Photo Credit: PTI

The green grass was a disguise. What lay beneath, however, was a surface that Karnataka’s spinners exploited, bowling Assam out for 135 before the visitor raced to 180 for two on the opening day of their Ranji Trophy Elite Group B encounter at the ACA Stadium in Guwahati on Monday.

Spinners Shikhar Shetty (5/53) and Ritesh Bhatkal (5/35) combined for all ten wickets. Karnataka secured a 44-run first innings lead and has eight wickets in hand heading into day two.

Shikhar and Ritesh bowled tight lines and controlled lengths, adopting Simon Harmer’s methods from 2025 on the same ground that led South Africa to a historic 2-0 Test series win against India, varying their pace and using more revs to pin Assam’s batters.

Captain Shreyas Gopal’s decision to introduce spin early paid dividends after Assam won the toss and elected to bat.

Karnataka brought in Rithesh Bhatkal after just seven overs into the day. | Photo Credit: PTI

Karnataka, noticing the green tinge on the surface, started with pace and an aggressive field set-up, positioning fielders at short leg and deep fine.

That strategy did not go according to plan, further undone by Manvanth Kumar and Vidhwath Kaverappa’s lines outside the off-stump. The pair flirted with the outside edge more than once but Assam openers Nibir Debka and Pradyun Saikia did just enough to thwart the nick and find the odd boundary on anything that was overpitched.

The green layer’s bluff was exposed soon after. Underneath the green cover lay a dry, grippy surface that Ritesh and Shikhar made full use of once they were introduced after the seventh over.

Ritesh drew first blood, in the second over of his spell, as he tricked Saikia to plant his defence for the turn, only to bowl a straighter and castle him. Shikhar scalped his first with a slider that trapped Sumit Ghadigaonkar leg before for one.

Ritesh struck again after Nibir attempted the reverse-sweep that top-edged to Karun Nair at first slip, leaving Assam reeling at 30 for three in the 13th over.

Captain Denish Das and Sibsankar Roy, Assam’s best batters’ this season, were the only two players that negotiated with spin to an extent. The post drinks passage was undoubtedly Assam’s most productive, as Denish and Sibsankar stitched together a 63-run partnership.

Sibsankar was the aggressor, while Denish was happy to be a bystander, leaving alone anything that was delivered on the fourth stump line. Sibsankar took a special liking to Shikhar, the southpaw using the favourable matchup against the left-armer to pick up a six over cow corner.

Assam's captain Denish Das bowled by Ritesh Bhatkal. | Photo Credit: PTI

Sibsankar followed it up with a late cut and a reverse sweep in the 29th over to keep the scoreboard ticking. Just when the partnership was beginning to grow, Sibsankar fell to his first false stroke, for 37 off 66 balls at the stroke of Lunch.

Ritesh completed his fifer in the first over after Lunch with the big wicket of Denish before Shikhar also reached the landmark, his third five-wicket haul this season, by wiping out Assam’s tail in no time. Together, Ritesh and Shikhar accounted for 35.1 of the 48.1 overs that Karnataka bowled.

In reply, Karnataka openers Rohan Patil and Mayank Agarwal got off the blocks strongly with a 129-run partnership. Rohan hit two boundaries in the first over and carried forward the same tempo throughout his innings.

The youngster showcased his wide range of shots, and operated at a run-a-ball. He caressed the off-side with some glorious drives, used his feet to go downtown, and swept through the on-side. What stood out the most was his striking ability, as he displayed both sheer force and natural timing to find the fence.

In between the boundaries, the southpaw also did well to rotate strike and keep the opposition under pressure.

Mayank, on the other hand, played second fiddle and relied more on his backfoot game and deft touches to score runs behind square.

While Karnataka’s proactive approach helped neutralise the threat of spin, some poor bowling by Assam also worked in its favour. Right from ball one, its bowlers bowled short and offered too much width, which Rohan and Mayank dispatched with disdain.

Rohan brought his half-century off 42 balls, but missed out on his maiden First-Class century in heartbreaking fashion. The 25-year old was dismissed on 89, courtesy of a stunning reflex catch by Sibsankar at first slip off Amlanjyoti Das’ bowling.

Mayank completed his fifty and was on 57 at Stumps, ensuring Karnataka had the lead and the platform to bury Assam under a mountain of runs.