Axar Patel’s excellent all-round show guided India-C to a convincing 136-run victory over India-B in the inconsequential last league engagement of the Deodhar Trophy at the JSCA Stadium here on Saturday.
Axar’s blistering unbeaten 98, his highest List-A score and ninth half-century, enabled India-C recover from a precarious situation and register a competitive 280 for five after skipper Shubman Gill opted to bat.
Later, the southpaw claimed Vijay Shankar’s wicket as India-C bowled out India-B for 144 for a morale-boosting win ahead of Monday’s final between the two sides.
Bad start
The start was not ideal for India-C as it lost Shubman in the second over.
Anmolpreet Singh (23) and Priyam Garg (18) added 53 before the latter was adjudged lbw off pacer Mohammed Siraj. Shahbaz Nadeem’s accuracy fetched him the wickets of Anmolpreet and Suryakumar Yadav (10).
Nitish Rana bowled Dinesh Karthik (34, 48b, 5x4) through the gate as India-C tottered at 126 for five in the 32nd over.
Virat shows his talent
Young Jharkhand batsman Virat Singh rose to the occasion and combined with Axar to revive the team.
Virat showed maturity while playing some attractive strokes and getting his 10th half-century dotted with three fours and as many sixes.
Axar, who took 46 balls to get to 50, displayed more aggression to plunder his next 46 runs from just 15 deliveries. His knock had 13 boundaries and three sixes. Virat and Axar added 154 for the sixth wicket in 18.4 overs.
India-B didn’t look at ease in the chase. As soon as Diwesh Pathania castled Ruturaj Gaikwad (20) in the 10th over, Jalaj Saxena got into the act, snaring Yashasvi Jaiswal (28) and Kedar Jadhav (5).
Leg-spinner Mayank Markande bowled wicket-to-wicket to dismiss Rana, Parthiv Patel, Anukul Roy and Nadeem.
B. Aparajith’s lone resistance ended after he scored his 21st half-century (53, 90b, 5x4).
The scores:
India-C: Shubman Gill c Kalaria b Vijay Shankar 1, Anmolpreet Singh lbw b Nadeem 23, Priyam Garg lbw b Siraj 18, Virat Singh (not out) 76, Suryakumar Yadav b Nadeem 10, Dinesh Karthik b Rana 34, Axar Patel (not out) 98; Extras (lb-1, w-19): 20; Total (for five wkts. in 50 overs): 280.
Fall of wickets: 1-1, 2-5, 3-54, 4-70, 5-126.
India-B bowling: Kalaria 10-0-75-0, Vijay Shankar 3-0-18-1, Nadeem 9-2-37-2, Siraj 10-1-60-1, Rana 10-0-30-1, Anukul 5-0-25-0, Jadhav 2-0-25-0, Aparajith 1-0-9-0.
India-B: Yashasvi Jaiswal c Axar b Jalaj 28, Ruturaj Gaikwad b Pathania 20, B. Aparajith b Porel 53, Kedar Jadhav c Porel b Jalaj 5, Nitish Rana lbw b Markande 1, Parthiv Patel c Anmolpreet b Markande 1, Vijay Shankar lbw b Axar 9, Anukul Roy c Karthik b Markande 1, Shahbaz Nadeem c Pathania b Markande 12, Rush Kalaria c Gill b Porel 6, Mohammed Siraj (not out) 1; Extras (lb-1, w-6): 7; Total (in 43.4 overs): 144.
Fall of wickets: 1-34, 2-7, 3-84, 4-90, 5-94, 6-108, 7-115, 8-129, 9-143.
India-C bowling: Porel 7.4-0-33-2, Pathania 8-1-32-1, Axar 10-1-28-1, Jalaj 8-0-25-2, Markande 10-0-25-4 .
