Naman Ojha is a relative unknown in Indian cricket, while Rudra Pratap Singh is already a star. On a bright Monday, the Madhya Pradesh wicketkeeper-batsman and the Uttar Pradesh paceman combined to script Central Zone’s comprehensive win over North Zone in the Deodhar Trophy here at the Chinnaswamy stadium.

Ojha struck a superbly-paced century to help his team post a handsome 293 for three in 50 overs. Later Rudra Pratap, who claimed five wickets for 45 runs, ran through the North top-order with a sensational opening over as Central coasted to their second victory in as many matches. The 70-run win fetched Central five points including a bonus point while North ended up with a point in the red. Having won their previous match too with a bonus point against West, Central increased their tally to 10. 

A damp squib was prevented by a brutal assault unleashed by Virender Sehwag. However, the North skipper’s valiant effort to revive his team’s sagging fortunes went in vain in front of another scintillating all-round performance by Central.

After hitting it lucky with the coin, Sehwag had little hesitation in inserting Mohammed Kaif’s men. The decision might have been influenced by the proceedings of the previous match, where West were routed by Central on a lively wicket and in overcast conditions. The forecast for rains on Monday, not surprisingly, came untrue and the match remained unaffected by the elements. 

Opening the innings with Faiz Fazal, Ojha made his intentions clear, straightaway switching into fifth gear. The North new-ball duo of Pradeep Sangwan and Vikramjit Mallik failed to exploit whatever the pitch offered in the initial stages of the game. Though not as stylish as the the left-handed Fazal, Ojha was a notch above in substance. The duo added a whopping 163 for the opening wicket in 185 balls even as Sehwag tried every trick in his bag to separate the two.

Fazal eventually fell after a well-made 66 (93b, 6x4) to Sehwag while Ojha carried on in the company of Suresh Raina. The right-hander slowed down a bit as Raina (42, 39b, 5x4) took charge, a miscued heave off Sangwan bringing his downfall. Ojha (110, 132b, 10x4, 2x6) soon followed the UP batsman, fending a short one from Manpret Gony and leaving Kaif (34 n.o., 23b, 2x4, 1x6) and Praveen Kumar to provide the final flourish.
North were off to the worst possible start. Sharing the new ball with Praveen, Rudra Pratap accounted for three batsmen with three excellent deliveries, all simply unplayable.

He first got one to come in to left-handed Shikar Dhawan, who could do nothing but nick it behind the wickets. A ball later, Gautam Gambhir prodded at an awaygoing delivery to be caught at third slip while Rajat Bhatia was dumbstruck as the ball shaped into him to crash through his defences. The hat-trick was denied, but North were left to fight a losing battle. Three overs later, the left-arm seamer trapped opener Aakash Chopra to reduce North to a precarious 12 for four. A fortuitous Sehwag (81, 72b, 11x4, 3x6), coming in at number five, tried his best to keep the chase on but the task kept getting steeper, especially with no quality partnerships. Udey Kaul (55, 79b, 79b, 4x4) and Amit Misra’s (43, 39b, 4x4, 1x6) knocks were too little and came too late in the day.

CENTRAL ZONE: Faiz Fazal c Kaul b Sehwag 66 (93b, 6x4), Naman Ojha c Kaul b Gony 110 (132b, 10x4, 2x6), Suresh Raina c Mallik b Sangwan 42 (41m, 39b, 5x4), Mohammad Kaif (not out) 34 (23b, 2x4, 1x6), Praveen Kumar (not out) 13 (19b, 1x6, 1x4). Extras (B-2, LB-5, NB-8, W-13) 28. Total (for 3 wkts, 50 overs) 293.
Fall of wickets: 1-163 (Fazal), 2-293 (Raina), 3-266 (Ojha).

Bowling: Pradeep Sangwan 10-0-67-1 (nb-6, w-4), Vikramjit Mallik 9-1-49-0 (w-7), Rajat Bhatia 2-0-21-0, Manpreet Gony 10-0-45-1 (w-2), Amit Misra 10-0-48-0 (nb-1), Virender Sehwag 9-0-56-1 (nb-1).
Scoring pattern: 5 overs: 26/0, 10: 62/0, 15: 82/0; 20: 112/0, 25: 135/0, 30: 163/1, 35: 188/1, 40: 226/1, 45: 266/2, end of innings: 293/3 in 50 overs.

Runs during: Power Play 1 (1-10): 62/0, Power Play 2 (11-15): 20/0, Power Play 3 (16-20, three men out): 30/0.


NORTH ZONE: Aakash Chopra lbw RP Singh 11 (17b, 1x4), Shikar Dhawan c Ojha b RP Singh 0 (3b), Gautam Gambhir c Rohit Sharma b RP Singh 0 (2b), Rajat Bhatia b RP Singh 0 (1b), Virender Sehwag lbw Sandeep 81 (72b, 11x4, 3x6), Virat Kohli b Sandeep 16 (23b, 3x4), Udey Kaul b Raina 55 (79b, 4x4), Amit Misra c Ojha b Praveen 43 (39b, 4x4, 1x6), Pradeep Sangwan lbw RP Singh 4 (11b), Vikramjit Mallik b Chawla 0 (3b), Manpreet Goni (not out) 1 (7b). Extras (LB-3, W-9) 12. Total (all out, 42.2 overs) 223.

Fall of wickets: 1-0 (Dhawan), 2-0 (Gambhir), 3-0 (Bhatia), 4-12 (Chopra), 5-60 (Kohli), 6-152 (Sehwag), 7-210 (Kaul), 8-219 (Misra), 9-220 (Mallik).

Bowling: Praveen Kumar 8-1-45-1 (w-4), RP Singh 7.2-1-36-5 (w-2), Sandeep Singh 9-2-43-2 (w-3), Murali Kartik 4-0-15-0, Piyush Chawla 10-0-63-1, Suresh Raina 4-2-18-1.

Scoring pattern: 5 overs: 8/3, 10: 39/4, 15: 82/5, 20: 104/5, 25: 135/5, 30: 163/6, 35: 196/6, 40: 219/8, end of innings: 223 all out (42.2 overs).

Runs during: Power Play 1 (1-10): 39/4, Power Play 2 (11-15): 43/1, Power Play 3 (16-20, three men out): 61/0..