Central Zone defeated South Zone by 4 wickets at the PCA Stadium in Mohali to qualify for the Semi Final of the Deodhar Trophy 2011/12. Central will meet North Zone in the Semi-Final Match at Dharamsala on the 18th.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jalaj Saxena restrict South Zone to 224 for 9
Asked to bat first after losing the toss, South Zone struggled to put up only a modest total of 224 for 9. Skipper Dinesh Karthik top scored for South Zone with 52 (from 68 balls with 4 fours and a six). The bowling heroes for Central Zone were swing bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar with 3 for 43 and off-spinner Jalaj Saxena with 3 for 39.
Central Zone overhaul target with 63 balls to spare
Central Zone without much fuss reached the target of 225 in just 39.3 overs losing 6 wickets. Mohammad Kaif coming in at no.3 top scored with 50 from 58 balls with 7 fours. Skipper Piyush Chawla provided acceleration towards the end with his cameo of 34 from 25 balls with 5 fours and a six. For the South Zone, left-arm-spinner Pragyan Ojha bowled well for his 2 for 39 in 9 overs including a couple of maidens.