Deodhar Trophy: Axar, Markande set up India C's win over India B

All-rounder Axar Patel smashed a 61-ball 98 before leg-spinner Mayank Markande claimed four wickets as India C trounced India B by 136 runs in the third and final one-dayer of the Deodhar Trophy here on Saturday. Batting first, India C posted a challenging 280 for 5, riding on Axar's brilliance and Virat Singh's 96-ball 76. They then returned to dismiss India B for 144 in 43.4 overs to complete the drubbing.

READ | 'I Don't Like To Consider Myself As Forefront Of Team': Rohit Sharma

India C grab a 136-run win

For India B, Baba Aparajith emerged as the top-scorer with a 90-ball 53 but he didn't get any support from the other hand. India B and India C have already qualified for the finals after India A lost both their ties and the two teams will face off in the summit clash here on Monday. Chasing the total, India B batsmen threw away starts, losing wickets at regular intervals. Openers Ruturaj Gaikwad (20) and Yashashvi Jaiswal (28) were the first to go after being dismissed by Dinesh Pathania and Jalaj Saxena as India B were reduced to 74 for two in 17.5 overs. However, India B suffered a collapse after that with Kedar Jadhav (5), Nitish Rana (1), Parthiv Patel (1), Vijay Shankar (9) and Anukul Roy (1) failing to reach double figures as they slumped to 115 for 7 in the 35th over. Shahbaz Nadeem (12) too left early, leaving Baba Aparajith stranded at the other end. Aparajith was removed in the 44th over, while Roosh Kalaria (6) was the last batsmen to be dismissed.

READ | Skipper Rohit Sharma Backs Youngsters, Says 'We Are Ready For B'desh'

Earlier, India C were off to a slow start, losing three wickets for 54 in 13.1 overs. Shubman Gill (1) was the first to go in the second over when he was caught by Kalaria off Shankar, while Priyam Garg (18) and Anmolpreet Singh (23) were sent back in the 13th and 14th over by Mohammed Siraj (1/60) and S Nadeem (2/37) respectively. Suryakumar Yadav (10) too was removed by Nadeem early, while India C lost half their side when Dinesh Karthik (34) was cleaned up by Nitish Rana (1/30). Virat Singh (76 not out) and Axar Patel (98 not out) then joined hands, sharing an unbeaten 154 run standoff 112 balls.

The spin bowling all-rounder Axar was the dominant of the two as he dealt in boundaries, smashing 13 fours and three sixes in his 61-ball innings. Singh played the second fiddle, scoring three boundaries and as many sixes during his 96-ball knock. Such was the dominance of the two batsmen that India B skipper Parthiv Patel introduced as many as eight bowlers but failed to produce a breakthrough as the duo took the team to a challenging total. For India B, Shahbaz Nadeem (2/37) claimed two wickets, while Vijay Shankar (1/18), Mohammed Siraj (1/60) and Nitish Rana (1/30) accounted for one each.

READ | Rohit Sharma On Rishabh Pant: 'Too Soon To Judge Him'

Brief Score:

India C: 280/5 in 49.6 overs  (Axar Patel 98 off 61, Virat Singh 76 off 96; S Nadeem 2/37).

India B: 144 all-out in 43.4 overs (B Aparajith 53; M Markande 4/25).

READ | Hardik Pandya Misses MS Dhoni And Ziva, Posts A Heartwarming Message