Kunnummal, Washington power South Zone to ninth Deodhar Trophy title
Parag, Kushagra fifties not enough as East Zone fall short by 45 runs chasing 329
ESPNcricinfo staff
03-Aug-2023
South Zone celebrate with their spoils, having beaten East Zone by 45 runs in the Deodhar Trophy final • Cricket Association of Pondicherry
South Zone 328 for 8 (Kunnummal 107, Mayank 63, Utkarsh 2-50, Shahbaz 2-55) beat East Zone 283 (Parag 95, Kushagra 68, Washington 3-60, Koushik 2-49) by 45 runs
South Zone rode on a 75-ball 107 from Rohan Kunnummal and a three-wicket haul by Washington Sundar to clinch their ninth Deodhar Trophy title in Puducherry.
Batting first, South put up 328 for 8, with Mayank Agarwal and N Jagadeesan also cracking fifties. In reply, Riyan Parag's 65-ball 95 and Kumar Kushagra's 58-ball 68 threatened to take East close but the South bowlers rallied just in time to bowl the opposition out for 283 and win by 45 runs.
The South openers Kunnummal and Mayank dominated from the outset with an 181-run partnership off just 152 balls. Kunnummal's innings was laced with 11 fours and four sixes. He didn't hold anything back. Mayank was much more sedate, scoring an 83-ball 63 with four fours.
East, having not struck for 24.3 overs, then picked two wickets in 11 balls, with allrounder Utkarsh Singh accounting for both openers. Sai Sudharsan fell cheaply, but Jagadeesan (54) ensured the momentum wasn't lost. South did lose three quick wickets between overs 42 to 44, but a rapid seventh-wicket stand worth 42 runs between Jagadeesan and R Sai Kishore helped them get over the 300-mark.
East's chase hit the rocks early with their top three going down within the first five overs. V Koushik struck with his first ball, removing Abhimanyu Easwaran for 1 before sending back Virat Singh for 6. Vidwath Kaverappa then got into the act to account for Utkarsh as the score slipped to 14 for 3.
Sudip Gharami tried to steady the chase, first with Saurabh Tiwary and then Parag, but perished for 41 in the 25th over. Parag and wicketkeeper Kushagra then got together to raise East's hopes. The duo added a 105-run stand off 80 balls for the sixth wicket, with Parag doing the bulk of the scoring. Having already smashed two centuries in the tournament, he was looking good for another one when he fell lbw to Washington. When the offspinner sent Kushagra packing as well, the end was nigh.
Kaverappa took for the final wicket, of Mukhtar Hussain, to give South the Deodhar crown. Kunnummal was awarded Player of the Match for his century, while Parag was named Player of the Series.