NewKerala.com

Key Points

Central Zone have secured their spot in the Duleep Trophy semi-finals despite the match ending in a draw. They progressed thanks to their massive first-innings lead over North East Zone. The team will now prepare to face West Zone starting September 4th at the same venue. North East Zone showed fighting spirit in their second innings with notable partnerships.

Key Points: Central Zone Advance to Duleep Trophy Semis Against West Zone

  • Central Zone declared at 331/7 setting 679 target for North East
  • North East Zone fought hard making 200/6 before draw
  • Jehu Anderson and R Jonathan scored 64 and 60 respectively
  • Spinners Shubham Sharma and Harsh Dubey took crucial wickets
2 min read

Duleep Trophy: Central Zone to meet West Zone in semis after draw against North East Zone

Central Zone reach Duleep Trophy semi-finals on first-innings lead after drawing with North East Zone. Will face West Zone from September 4 at BCCI CoE Ground.

"Anderson and Jonathan put up a strong resistance by sharing a partnership of 110 off 168 balls - Match Report"

Bengaluru, Aug 31

Central Zone have advanced to the Duleep Trophy semi-finals on the basis of their first-innings lead over North-East Zone in their drawn quarter-final game at the BCCI CoE Ground 2 on Sunday. Central Zone will now face West Zone in the semi-final at the CoE from September 4.

In the morning, North East Zone began their pursuit of chasing an improbable 679 to win, after Central Zone declared their innings at 331/7 in 80.3 overs, with their lead standing at 678 runs. They managed to make 200/6 in 58 overs, before the game ended in a draw, with Jehu Anderson and R Jonathan making 64 and 60 respectively.

North East Zone’s chase began with Karnajit Yumnam and Techi Doria seeing off challenging bowling from Deepak Chahar and Khaleel Ahmed to share a 40-run opening partnership. The breakthrough for Central Zone came in the 14th over when left-arm spinner Harsh Dubey had Yumnam (17) caught by skipper Rajat Patidar at cover.

On the very next ball, Central Zone struck again as Aditya Thakare castled Doria for 15, before removing Ashish Thapa for 13, as he nicked behind to substitute keeper Upendra Yadav. But Anderson and Jonathan put up a strong resistance by sharing a partnership of 110 off 168 balls for the fourth wicket.

Their admirable fightback ended soon as off-spinner Shubham Sharma removed Anderson for 64 before castling Hem Chetri. Dubey then picked up his second wicket by removing Jonathan for 60, as North East Zone slipped from 176/3 to 186/6, losing three wickets for just 10 runs. With no result in sight, both teams agreed to a draw at tea and play was called off.

Brief Scores: Central Zone 532/4 dec and 331/7 dec (Shubham Sharma 122; Akash Kumar 2-44) draw with North East Zone 185 and 200/6 in 58 overs (Jehu Anderson 64, R Jonathan 60; Shubham Sharma 2-10, Aditya Thakare 2-21)

- IANS

Share this article:

Reader Comments

S
Shubham Sharma
Shubham Sharma with both bat and ball! 122 runs and 2 wickets - what an all-round performance. Central Zone looking strong for the semis against West Zone 💪
P
Priya S
Why declare at 331/7? Could have given more batting practice to middle order. Sometimes these declarations feel too conservative 🤔
A
Aryan P
Good to see North East teams getting exposure at this level. They might have lost but gained valuable experience against established teams. Future looks promising for NE cricket!
K
Kavya N
Central Zone's bowling attack looks balanced - Chahar, Khaleel, spinners Dubey and Sharma. West Zone semis will be a proper test! Can't wait for that match 🏏
M
Michael C
Impressive first innings total of 532/4 by Central Zone. That's where the match was really won. Batting depth making the difference in these conditions.

We welcome thoughtful discussions from our readers. Please keep comments respectful and on-topic.

Leave a Comment

Minimum 50 characters 0/50