Wicket-keeper batter Miriyala Durga, Tamanna Nigam, and Arundhati Reddy shine with the bat after skipper Minu Manni picks up a 6-wicket haul as South Zone books a place in the final against East Zone.
South Zone, led by skipper Minnu Mani, took a 59-run first-innings lead after posting 289 runs on the board in their first innings with the bat against West Zone, led by skipper Smriti Mandhana. South Zone were 58/2 in 30 overs, leading West Zone by 117 runs at the end of the 2nd day’s play.
Tamanna Nigam and the wicket-keeper batter Miriyala Durga the two overnight batters continued and went on to stitch a massive 132-run partnership for the 3rd wicket, taking the lead past the 200-run mark before Bhavana Goplani picked up the wicket of the wicket-keeper batter Miriyala Durga to provide the much-needed breakthrough for West Zone. Skipper Minnu Mani joined Tamanna Nigam at the crease, and the duo stitched another crucial 51-run partnership for the 4th wicket partnership before Shradda Pokharkar cleaned up Tamanna Nigam to provide the 4th breakthrough for her side. Tamanna Nigam (99 off 200 balls) fell just one run short of her well-deserved century.
Skipper Minnu Mani soon followed her back to the pavilion to provide the 5th breakthrough for West Zone. Sajeevan Sajana joined Arundhati Reddy at the crease and the duo continued to swell the lead past the 300-run mark after lunch. South Zone skipper Minnu Mani eventually declared the innings at 262/5 in 101 overs with a lead of 321 runs. Tamanna Nigam (99 off 200 balls), wicket-keeper batter Miriyala Durga (81 off 205 balls), Arundhati Reddy (26 off 48 balls), and G Kamalini (18 off 43 balls), were the top performers with the bat for South Zone in their 2nd innings with the bat. Shraddha Pokharkar (12-3-23-2), Anuja Patil (16-8-26-1), and Bhavana Goplani (6-2-13-1) were the top performers with the ball for West Zone.
The game eventually ended in a draw and South Zone progressed to the final of the Senior Women’s Inter Zonal Multi-Day Trophy where they will face East Zone led by skipper Deepti Sharma.
