In Karnataka’s victorious 2024-25 Vijay Hazare Trophy campaign, he scored 433 runs and came up with a match-winning century in the final against Vidarbha. In the ongoing Ranji Trophy, he has totalled 823 runs, highest for his State and third-best overall.
“I am very happy with the achievement,” Smaran said on Tuesday, after scoring his fifth First Class ton (135, 216b, 12×4). “All of us have contributed. Karun [Nair] has gotten close to 700 runs [691], Devdutt [Padikkal] has come close to 500 [532] and KL [Rahul] is batting really well.
“In order to win a championship, it’s very important that all the batters fire. I’m glad that in each and every game, one or the other guy has been batting well. So really happy.”
The century against Uttarakhand at the Ekana Cricket Stadium may have come on a batting-friendly surface, but the fact that it was the Ranji Trophy semifinal – a big occasion – wasn’t lost on him.
“It’s right up there, because you know, it’s a semifinal. Although we got more than 700 runs on board, it’s my first Ranji Trophy semifinal. It’s right up there.”
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The 22-year-old also credited the dressing-room atmosphere. The present Karnataka XI has as many as five Test cricketers – KL Rahul, Mayank Agarwal, Karun Nair, Devdutt Padikkal and Prasidh Krishna.
“Hardly do you find a State side with four-five guys playing for the country. There is a lot to learn in the dressing room and a lot of talk happens on the field as well, as and when I’m batting etc.
“So there are a lot of inputs from all four or five of them who have contributed a lot to the country.”
Published on Feb 17, 2026
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