Half-centuries by Vijay Zol, Yusuf Pathan and Kedar Jadhav helped West Zone clinch a five-wicket win over South Zone in the second semi-final. Fighting for a place in the finals of the Prof D B Deodhar Trophy at the Nehru Stadium, West Zone chased down 259 runs in 41.5 overs.
Earlier, asked to bat first, South Zone lost their top-order early in the innings. But a diligent 45 by Dinesh Karthik in the middle order, followed by Sachin Baby and Stuart Binny’s fifties lower down the order, helped South Zone post a respectable 258-run total on the board. While Baby made 58, Binny made a quick-fire 65 before being run out.
During their run chase, West Zone to lost captain Parthiv Patel and Manprit Juneja in quick succession with just 26 runs on the board. But Vijay Zol played a mature knock to anchor the innings and forged useful partnerships Ambati Rayudu and Yusuf Pathan, before being sent back. While the youngster held up one end, Pathan unleashed some big strokes at the other. The hard-hitting batter made a whirlwind 68 off 53 balls to take the game away from South Zone. After the departure of Zol, he found an able ally in Kedar Jadhav, and the duo took the team closer to the target. Jadhav contributed an unbeaten 56 off 44 balls to take the team across the line.
