Ranji Trophy: A case of so near and yet so far for a star-studded Karnataka team

Karnataka's Ranji Trophy season showcased talent but highlighted key weaknesses, leaving fans questioning their potential for success.

Karnataka’s 2025-26 Ranji Trophy season at once feels like a success and not so.

If one considers the side’s precarious position in the last group-stage match versus Punjab when it nearly failed to qualify for the knockouts, a runner-up finish feels like a bonus.

But there is also a view that a full-strength, star-filled team replete with Test players should have fared better against a first-time finalist.

Regardless of how one sees it, the unvarnished truth is that there are no easy teams in the Ranji Trophy anymore, and pedigreed outfits — like eight-time champion Karnataka — cannot take anyone lightly.

Especially not someone like Jammu & Kashmir, which had recorded outright wins over five past Ranji champions in Delhi, Hyderabad, Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Bengal.

The final laid bare two of Karnataka’s biggest lacunae — the lack of bite when lead spinner Shreyas Gopal has an off-day and the pace bowlers’ propensity to not be persistent.