Sports

West Zone Draw With Central Zone, Enter Duleep Trophy Final

West Zone, led by Priyank Panchal, will face the winner of North Zone versus South Zone in the summit clash on July 12.

Pujara (133) and Suryakumar (52) played a vital role in West Zone's success in the semi-final.
info_icon

West Zone confirmed its place in the Duleep Trophy final on Saturday after their semi-final clash against Central Zone ended in a draw.

West Zone, led by Priyank Panchal, will face the winner of North Zone versus South Zone in the summit clash on July 12.

Previously on Day 3, Cheteshwar Pujara (133) and Suryakumar Yadav (52) had put West Zone in a strong position after the initial collapse. In their run chase of 399, Central could only make 128-4 before the skies opened up at the KSCA Oval around tea.

West did not necessarily need to win, thanks to their 98-run first innings lead, which was enough to secure them a place in the final.

After starting Day 4 at 292-9, West could only add five runs.

Central openers Vivek Singh and Himanshu Mantri returned to the pavilion early, leaving their side in a lurch at 17-2.

Dhruv Jurel and Amandeep Khare appeared to be reviving the innings, but Dharmendra Jadeja removed the former, as Central further slipped to 55-3.

Rinku Singh took the onus of scoring runs, scoring a 30-ball 40, giving the opposition bowlers a minor worry before lunch. Jadeja, in particular, endured Rinku's assault, who smashed him for two sixes.

However, the target was beyond reach with just one man putting on a show. Rinku was finally dismissed by Arzan Nagwaswalla, with play ending shortly soon after.