Gautam Gambhir’s show of grit and self-discipline went in vain as North Zone conceded an 81-run first innings lead to Central Zone on the third day of the Duleep Trophy semifinal match at the PCA Stadium here on Friday.
Despite Gambhir’s 37th first class hundred (167, 242b, 328m, 18x4), North managed to put up only 457 in its first innings and virtually ended its journey in the tournament. Play was called off for the day 25 minutes before schedule due to bad light.
As North began the penultimate day at 130 for two, Gambhir, resuming at 68, curbed his flamboyance to lead his team’s run-chase. The Delhi left-hander put up century partnerships with Yuvraj Singh (47, 105b, 127m, 7x4, 1x6) and Mandeep Singh (74b, 169b, 174m, 8x4, 1x6).
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With his focus on the ultimate objective, The North captain played a sedate innings. He cut out the risky shots and took a while to hit his first boundary of the day.
Gambhir’s overnight partner Yuvraj was beaten a few times, but showcased some fluent drives to the fence and added 22 in the morning. He was foxed by chinaman bowler Kuldeep Yadav, ending a 110-run stand for the third wicket.
An unperturbed Gambhir, however, found good support from Mandeep. As Piyush Chawla employed his spinners from both ends, the Gambhir-Mandeep pair mixed aggression with caution to help their side move ahead.
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Chawla took the new ball in the 89th over and it proved to be the turning point of the match. North lost Gambhir and Mandeep, within six overs, to Pankaj Singh and Ishwar Pandey.
Stumper Nitin Saini (56, 64b, 76m, 8x4, 1x6) and Parveez Rasool (44, 47b, 57m, 6x4, 1x6) provided some spark, but the lower order did not have enough strength to last long.
The scores:
Central Zone — 1st innings: 538.
North Zone — 1st innings: Jiwanjot Singh lbw b Pandey 2, Gautam Gambhir c sub (Ghosh) b Pandey 167, Virender Sehwag b Pankaj 32, Yuvraj Singh b Yadav 47, Mandeep Singh c Ojha b Pankaj 74, Nitin Saini b Yadav 56, Rishi Dhawan c sub (Amit Mishra) b Yadav 7, Parveez Rasool c Fazal b Karn 44, Samiullah Beigh lbw b Chawla 2, Yuzvendra Chahal st. Ojha b Karn 12, Parvinder Awana (not out) 0; Extras (b-9, lb-3, nb-2): 14; Total (in 118.1 overs): 457.
Fall of wickets: 1-9, 2-60, 3-170, 4-330, 5-346, 6-374, 7-405, 8-430, 9-446.
Central Zone bowling: Pankaj Singh 22-2-77-2, Ishwar Pandey 22-3-86-2, Kuldeep Yadav 23-3-94-3, Piyush Chawla 25-2-93-1, Jalaj Saxena 10-1-28-0, Karn Sharma 16.1-1-67-2.