Hardik Raj of Karnataka celebrating after taking the wicket of Vimal Khumar of Tamil Nadu.
| Photo Credit: VEDHAN M

Hardik Raj, playing in his third First Class match, showed he belonged at this level with an all-round performance against Tamil Nadu on Saturday.

The 17-year-old scored his maiden half-century and then delivered a tidy spell with his left-arm spin to take two crucial wickets and vindicated the faith shown by the Karnataka selectors.

The youngster felt the half-century gave confidence when he came to bowl, saying, “Yeah, it is a positive thing, and inside the dressing room, there is a positive approach. So, it does help. I am just happy and looking forward to winning this game for the team.”

Despite his inexperience, he showed great smarts when he tied down Vimal Khumar by coming around the wicket, giving just three runs off 18 balls before bowling him around his legs. “I was trying to get him caught at short-leg or leg-slip and to make him play down the leg side,” he explained.

“There was more turn and bounce (than the first day) on the pitch, and our bowlers were bowling good lengths. I felt that the TN batters could have applied themselves better,” he added.

Hardik Raj, playing in his third First-Class match, showed he belonged at this level with an all-round performance against Tamil Nadu on Saturday.