Published: Dec 01, 2014, 12:34 PM (IST)
Edited: Dec 01, 2014, 12:34 PM (IST)
Nov 1, 2014
Mayank Agarwal’s 86 and contributions from the rest of the batting ensured South Zone got to 314 for 7 against West Zone in the second semi-final of the Deodhar Trophy 2014-15 on Monday. Robin Uthappa scored 47 and Baba Aparajith made 56 at the top to help South Zone get a good start.
Opening the innings, Uthappa and Mayank added 104 for the first wicket after batting for 18 overs. The duo started sedately but managed to find boundaries at will. Mayank was the aggressor, but Uthappa was not too far behind. The partnership was looking ominous for West Zone, and it was only through the batsman’s error that they were able to break through. Uthappa tapped the ball to third man and took off for a non-existent run. He was run out for a good 47.
Aparajith — who had scored a terrific ton in the quarter-final against Central Zone — came in at No. 3, and continued from where he left off in the last game. He hit two fours and two sixes in his 64-ball 56. He was out in the quest for quick runs, holing out to long-on off Dhawal Kulkarni.
In between, Mayank suffered a rush of blood and charged out to slog Deepak Hooda only to miss the ball entirely. Smit Patel effected the stumping and Mayank was dismissed for 86 off 87 balls. Till that moment his knock had been nigh chanceless, as he cut and drove with authority. He hit as many as 10 boundaries in his innings, and continued the sublime form he has been in since the start of the season.
Manish Pandey and Karun Nair then took on the bowling, boosted the run-rate toward the slog overs. The duo batted well, scoring their runs in singles and twos while also hitting boundaries at regular intervals. Karun was out for a brisk 34-ball 35. Stuart Binny walked in at No. 6 with just four overs remaining.
Pandey completed his fifty in good time, and boosted South past the 300-run mark. Binny managed to get in a couple of boundaries before giving Kulkarni his third wicket, and Pandey was out soon thereafter for 55 in the final over of the innings, but South had reached a commanding total by that point.
Brief scores:
South Zone 314 for 7 for 5 in 50 overs (Robin Uthappa 47, Mayank Agarwal 86, Baba Aparajith 56, Manish Pandey 55; Dhawal Kulkarni 3 for 64) vs West Zone.
