Deodhar Trophy 2023 Highlights, Round 1: North all out for 60; South Zone win by 185 runs; East, West complete easy chases

South, East and West Zone complete easy wins on Day 1 of the 2023 Deodhar Trophy. While West Zone and East Zone chased down targets by 9 wickets and 6 wickets repectively, South Zone bundled out North Zone for 60, winning by 185 runs, according to VJD method.

Vyshak to continue. Wicket!!! Full and straight from Vyshak and it rattles the stumps behind the attempted defense. North Zone all out for 60, the lowest total in Deodhar Trophy history.

Kaverappa back into the attack. Wicket!! Kaverappa picks up a fifer. Full and straight and dismantles the stumps behind Sandeep Sharma. Mayank Yadav is the last man in.

Sandeep Sharma b Vidwath Kaverappa 0(3)

Vyshak into the attack. Wicket!! Short outside the off stump, Marakande looks to pull, only manages a catch to the keeper. Sandeep Sharma in at 10.

Mayank Markande c N Jagadeesan b V Vyshak 4(12)

Revised target: 246 in 28 overs.

Sai Kishore to continue after the rain delay. Full and straight, Markande defends to the off-side. Two runs of the over.

Wicket!! Washington gets his first wicket of the game as Mayank Dagar holes out to Devdutt Padikkal. South Zone three wickets away from a win. Down comes the rain again.

M J Dagar c Devdutt Padikkal b Washington Sundar 9(21)

Brisk resumption of play. North Zone have a revised target of 262 to be scored in 35 overs. North Zone need 207 runs to win.

The showers return and the covers are being brought back in. Stay Tuned for further updates.

Sai Kishore and Washington Sundar bowling some tight overs in tandem here. Captain Mayank Agarwal worried about another rain intervention and wants to complete the quota of 20 overs for a result. Chance!! An edge is induced but it deflects off the wicket-keeper’s gloves past slip. Sai Kishore millimeters away from his second wicket.

Sai Kishore into the attack. Wicket!! Huge appeal from the fielders and the umpire raises his finger. Was a quicker one and Rishi Dhawan was trapped in front of leg stump. Mayank Dagar in at 8.

R R Dhawan lbw R Sai Kishore 6(10)

Vyshak into the attack. Four!! Slightly short and wide from Vyshak, Dhawan cuts it past a diving deep third man fielder for a boundary.

WICKET!! The procession of wickets continue as Vivrant Sharma is the next to go. Koushik picks up his first wicket. Vivrant tried an expansive shot but only manages an edge to the keeper. Rishi Dhawan in at 7.

Vivrant Sharma c N Jagadeesan b Koushik V 4(12)

The revised target for North Zone is 275, to be chased down in 40 overs. NORTH ZONE NEED 251 RUNS TO WIN.

Kaverappa into his fifth over. The rain has gotten heavier and the umpires have signalled the covers to be brought on. Stay Tuned for updates regarding the rain.

Koushik to Mandeep. Keeping it back-of-a-length on off-stump. Three dots to start the over. Koushik has made sure the line and length pin the better down. No way out for the North Zone batters against the two Karnataka pacers in the early overs. Maiden over.

Wicket!! Kaverappa gets his third. Prabhsimran tries to loft it over the in-field on the off-side but only manages to find the point fielder. Looks like the edge of his bat broke while attempting the shot, preventing him from making proper contact. Mandeep Singh in at 4.

Prabhsimran Singh (wk) c Rohan S Kunnummal b Vidwath Kaverappa 2(9)

Wicket!! Captain Nitish Rana has to depart as well. Another over with two wickets. Wonderful catch by V Koushik at thirdman as Nitish slashed at one outside off-stump. Kaverappa has four wickets in his three-over spell. Vivrant in at 6.

Nitish Rana (c) c Koushik V b Vidwath Kaverappa 4(5)

Wicket!! Kaverappa strikes!! Short outside off, Sharma tries to defend off the back foot, only manages an edge to the keeper. Prabhsimran in at 3.

Abhishek Sharma c N Jagadeesan b Vidwath Kaverappa 1(6)

Wicket! Khajuria lashes at a full one outside off, can only manage an edge to the keeper. Nitish Rana in at 4.

Shubham Khajuria c N Jagadeesan b Vidwath Kaverappa 10(9)

V Koushik in from the other end. Four dot balls to begin the second over. Sharma tries to play a lofted shot, the ball flies off the edge to the third man fielder for a single. A couple to end the over.

Duleep hero Kaverappa to open the bowling for South Zone. Abhishek Sharma and Shubham Khajuria at the crease for North Zone. A slight mix-up between the batters, Abhishek would have been out with a direct hit. The overthrow eventually gives them a second run. Six!! Full on leg-stump, Khajuria plays a wonderful pick up shot over the mid-wicket fence for six.

Sandeep to Jagadeesan, OUT! Slower-bouncer and Jagadeesan’s upper-cut is caught by Dhawan as he juggles backwards from short third! A fine knock of 72 from just 66 balls comes to an end. Vidwath Kaverappa comes in at 10. He chips a ball through cover and finds two runs, 300 up for SZ! Vyshak and Kaverappa reel in some quick singles and South Zone finishes with a mammoth 303/8 on the board.

Jagadeesan 72(66) ct R R Dhawan b Sandeep Sharma

Sundar struggles to find his timing and sends one straight to the long-on fielder as Dhawan works with the change of pace. Sai Kishore joins Jagadeesan with nine deliveries to spare. Fine yorker from Dhawan and Sai Kishore fails to put bat on ball as it rushes to the keeper. Dhawan to Sai Kishore, OUT! Dhawan knocks off the timber as Sai Kishore attempts a cheeky shot across the line. Another yorker from Dhawan but new batter V Vyshak gets a late inside-edge which trickles past the keeper down to the fine-leg fence for FOUR.

Washington Sundar 5(8) ct Mandeep Singh b R R Dhawan; R Sai Kishore 0(2) b R R Dhawan

Rana floats one in and Jagadeesan pumps it over long-on for SIX. Fuller delivery and Jagadeesan makes room to clobber the ball straight past the bowler for FOUR. A couple of singles to follow and Rana comes around the wicket to Jagadeesan. Another tossed-up delivery and Jagadeesan slog-sweeps it way over the mid-wicket fence for another SIX - 18 runs from the over.

OUT! Karthick smites a shorter ball that momentarily stops on the strip and finds the deep mid-wicket fielder off Mayank Dagar. He throws away a decent start and Washington Sundar comes in at 7.

Mayank Yadav continues to crank it up with another fiery bumper but Jagadeesan makes room and swipes the ball over wide mid-on for FOUR. Low full toss outside the off-stump and Jagadeesan slices it past point for two runs and brings up his FIFTY from 54 balls.

East Zone beats Central Zone by six wickets. Utkarsh Singh’s 89 set up the chase after a superb bowling performance. Murasingh, Akash Deep and Shahbaz Ahmed picked up three wickets apiece as Central Zone failed to forge any notable partnership.

Jagadeesan switches gears and motors towards his half-century. Karthick, meanwhile, settles in quickly with a few sparkling shots.

WICKET! A fine bumper from Mayank Yadav unsettles Ricky Bhui, who arches back but gloves the ball towards first-slip. A superb dive from a wrong-footed Prabhsimran has Bhui packing. What an effort after initially moving in the wrong direction. KB Arun Karthick is the new batter as Yadav completes a wicket-maiden.

Ricky Bhui 31(39) ct Prabhsimran Singh b Mayank Yadav

Jagadeesan sheds a tepid start and launches Abhishek Sharma for a SIX and a fine sweep for FOUR. Excellent recovery for South Zone.

Utkarsh Singh falls short of his century as Aditya Sarvate removes him on 89. He’s set up the chase nicely as his captain, Saurabh Tiwary, walks in.

Utkarsh Singh 89(104) ct Upendra Yadav (Sub) b A A Sarvate

Ricky Bhui and N Jagadeesan rebuild for South against the spinners and lead the side over 200 right before the drinks break.

Utkarsh Singh continues to impress in his maiden Deodhar Trophy outing. He moves towards the 80s with a win in sight for East Zone. It is just 56 runs away from the target.

Mayank Agarwal throws it away! Short ball drifting in from Markande and Agarwal mistimes his drag-pull, straight to the deep mid-wicket fielder. He is distraught as he trudges back with Ricky Bhui walking in.

Nitish Rana strikes! The offie’s angle works against Padikkal who gets a sharp outside-edge off the fuller length to wicketkeeper Prabhsimran. Attempts to drive with the turn but Padikkal ends up nicking it. N Jagadeesan is in at 4.

Devdutt Padikkal 17(26) ct Prabhsimran Singh b Nitish Rana

Second wicket for Karn Sharma as Virat Singh falls cheaply on 12.Subhransu Senapati walks in at No. 4.

Virat Singh 12(15) ct Yash Dubey b Karn Sharma

Mayank Agarwal drives the ball to deep cover and brings up his FIFTY off 53 balls. He’s settled in slowly behind Kunnummal, before slowly unfurling his range of strokes. Patient hand so far.

99* for Priyank Panchal as West Zone registers a massive nine-wicket win with nearly half the overs to spare. Superb acceleration from the West skipper behind Harvik Desai, slamming seven fours and as many sixes.

Kunnummal falls as Mayank Markande strikes for North Zone. The leggie deceives the South opener with added flight on the ball. Kunnummal charges but fails to control the slice and ends up chipping the ball straight to cover-point. In walks Devdutt Padikkal.

Rohan S Kunnummal 70(61) ct Shubham Khajuria b Mayank Markande

Dhruva from Pondicherry: Central Zone finally gets a breakthrough with Abhimanyu Easwaran handing a catch at long-on off Karn Sharma.

Easwaran 38(55) ct Shivam Mavi b Karn Sharma

Rohan Kunnummal slams a 51-ball FIFTY in his first competitive game in six months. He works Markande across the line for a FOUR through mid-wicket before stepping out and pumping a SIX over cow corner to raise the 100-run partnership with Agarwal. 17 runs from the over.

Harvik Desai falls short of his hundred on 85 as Lee Yong Lepcha breaks a 167-run stand for the opening wicket. Skipper Priyank Panchal has also motored alongside quickly by moving into the 80s as Rahul Tripathi joins him.

H Desai 85(71) ct Khrievitso b Lee Yong Lepcha

Short from Dagar and Kunnummal rocks back and slashes the ball in a flash through point for FOUR.

Agarwal gets a move on as he puts off Mayank Yadav’s short balls on either side of the wicket. A bouncer angling in was slid past the keeper down leg for FOUR before he thwacked a short ball outside the off-stump for another FOUR.

Utkarsh Singh on the cusp of a sprightly half-century, ahead of his much-accomplished partner Easwaran. Central continues to search for a breakthrough.

Panchal raises his fifty while Harvik storms towards his century. He is on 80 off just 68 deliveries.

Mayank Yadav is into the attack. Short and wide and Kunnummal upper-cuts the ball wide off the slip cordon for SIX.

FIFTY up for East Zone as Easwaran and Utkarsh Singh see off the early spells from a decent seam attack comprising Aniket Choudhary, Shivam Mavi and Yash Thakur.

100 up for West Zone as Harvik Desai breezes past a half-century. He has struck 11 fours so far as the North East bowlers have been peppered all around the park.

Kunnummal stands outside the crease to negate the movement. He flicks Sandeep through mid-wicket for successive fours.

Kunnummal taps the ball to point and there’s a direct throw from the fielder at the striker’s end as Mayank Agarwal hurls towards the crease. The fielders are interested but Agarwal makes his ground.

Agarwal falls across as Sandeep slides one in. He nearly gets a leading-edge back to the bowler. A hint of inswing from a shorter length and Agarwal nudges it behind square for a single and opens his account.

Rishi Dhawan comes in from the opposite end. First boundary for Kunnummal as he slashes one past point for four.

Harvik and Panchal are off to a blazing start against the North East. Rex Singh and Palzor have been frequented to the boundary within the first 30 minutes.

Mayank Agarwal and Rohan Kunnummal, the captain and his deputy, open the batting for South Zone. Sandeep Sharma to open the attack for North Zone.

Watchful star from Abhimanyu Easwaran as his partner Utkarsh Singh finds the early boundaries in East’s 208-run chase against Central.

Harvik Desai and Priyank Panchal open the chase for West. Harvik’s off the blocks with two fours off Rex Singh in the opening over.

South Zone wins the toss and opts to bat

Playing XIs

South Zone: Mayank Agarwal, N Jagadeesan, Rohan Kunnummal, Devdutt Padikkal, KB Arun Karthick, Ricky Bhui, Sai Kishore, Washington Sundar, Vidwath Kaverappa, V Koushik, V Vyshak

North Zone: Abhishek Sharma, Prabhsimran Singh, Mandeep Singh, Nitish Rana, Rishi Dhawan, Mayank Dagar, Vivrant Sharma, Mayank Yadav, Mayank Markande, Sandeep Sharma, Shubham Khajuria

• Toss for South Zone vs North Zone coming up. Match starts at 1:30 PM IST.
• North East Zone 207 all out in 47 overs (Imliwati 38, Nagwaswalla 3/31)
• Central Zone 207 all out in 50 overs (Rinku Singh 54, Murasingh 3/29)

Central Zone is all out for 207 as opener Aryan Juyal remains not out on 39 upon return. Poor batting display from the Central side, save a counter from Rinku Singh’s half-century. The East seamers did a commendable job, with Murasingh leading the pack with figures of 10-1-29-3. Three wickets each for Akash Deep and Shahbaz Ahmed as well.

Y R Thakur 5(15) ct A R Easwaran b Akash Deep

Aryan Juyal, who retired hurt earlier, returned at the fall of the ninth Central wicket and has pushed the score past 200 with a slew of boundaries.

A refreshing counter from No. 9 Imliwati has propelled North East past 200. West Zone suddenly floundering with the ball and there comes Nagwaswalla with the breakthrough. Imliwati falls for 38 as the left-armer picks up his second wicket. Khrievitso hits a four but Nagwaswalla responds by cleaning him up. North East is bundled for 207.

Imliwati 38(38) ct H Desai b A Nagwaswalla; Khrievitso 4(3) b A Nagwaswalla

Rinku Singh is trapped on 54 by a returning Murasingh. Huge blow for Central as the innings enters the final phase. Aditya Sarvate follows him shortly as Akash Deep strikes.

Rinku Singh 54(63) lbw M B Mura Singh; Sarvate 3(7) ct Kumar Kushagra b Akash Deep

Another wicket against the run of play. Karn Sharma falls after playing a decent hand behind Rinku. He departs for a run-a-ball 32.

Karn Sharma 32(32) ct Subhransu Senapati b Utkarsh Singh

57-BALL FIFTY for Rinku Singh. Trademark knock under pressure of wickets tumbling at the other end. 17th List A fifty in just 47 innings for the UP sensation.

No. 9 Imliwati is adding some crucial runs to the North East total. He has moved to 18 off as many balls with two fours and a six.

Shivam Dube gets his second wicket and North East loses two in successive overs. Palzor falls after a quickfire 30-ball 29.

Palzor 29(30) ct A Sheth b Shivam Dube

Parth Bhut strikes as he stops Rex Singh in his tracks. He falls on 23 and North East is six down now. Can the lower-orders lead the side to 200 from this point?

Rex 23(36) lbw b Parth Bhut

Third wicket for Shahbaz Ahmed as Shivam Chaudhary departs for 22 of 39 balls. Central’s batting tapers towards the lower-order and the spotlight will well and truly be on Rinku Singh now.

Shivam Chaudhary 22(39) ct A R Easwaran b Shahbaz

Rinku Singh launches a six off Avinav Choudhary as Central trudges past the 100-run mark.

First List A wicket in over two years for Shivam Dube as he dismisses North East captain Langlonyamba for 30. North East has lost half its men now as West tightens the grip on the contest.

Langlonyamba M 30(47) ct R A Tripathi b Shivam Dube

Shivam Dube returns to bowling after a long hiatus as North East is led past the 100-run mark by Langlonyamba and Rex Singh.

Second wicket for Shahbaz as Dubey is caught-behind after a positive start. Central in trouble and in walks crisis man, Rinku Singh.

Yash Dubey 17(26) ct Kumar Kushagra b Akash Deep

Big wicket for East as Central captain Venkatesh Iyer is trapped on 8 by Shahbaz Ahmed. Shivam Chaudhary walks in to join Yash Dubey who has moved to 17.

Venkatesh Iyer 8(14) lbw b Shahbaz

Mulani picks up his second wicket as Kamsha Yanfo falls on 1. A probing six-over spell so far from the left-armer with two wickets and as many maidens.

Kamsha Yangfo 1(14) ct R A Tripathi b Shams Mulani

Jehu Anderson falls after building a lively start. Shams Mulani picks up the third wicket for West Zone. Priyank Panchal also employs left-arm spinner Parth Bhut from the other end.

Madhav Kaushik’s woes end as he is dismissed by Shahbaz Ahmed on 13 off 47 deliveries. Skipper Venkatesh Iyer steps out for Central Zone at no. 4.

Madhav Kaushik 13(47) ct Kumar Kushagra b Shahbaz

Atit Sheth strikes in his second over for West Zone. Lamichaney departs after a promising start, caught-behind on 22. North East captain Langlonyamba walks in at no. 4.

Nilesh Lamichaney 22(33) ct H Desai b A Sheth

Lamichaney builds on with a few boundaries along with Anderson as North East pushes towards fifty after the early wicket.

A sedate start for Central as Kaushik and Juyal fend off the East batters cautiously. Murasingh has already completed five overs up front, conceding just 10 runs with a maiden while Akash Deep and Mukhtar Hussain split up from the other end.

Wicketkeeper Jehu Anderson and Lamichaney rebuild for North East after the early dismissal of Ahlawat. Nagwaswall and Gaja continue to build a sharp attack for the West,

Akash Deep and Murasingh are forming a tight opening attack against the Central openers, Kaushik and Juyal, who have opted for a watchful start.

Madhav Kaushik is yet to get off the mark after eight deliveries. Meanwhile, Aryan Juyal builds a watchful start with a boundary against Murasingh.

First wicket for West Zone. Arzan Nagwaswalla dismisses North East opener Anup Ahlawat caught behind for 6. Jehu Anderson is the new batter in.

Anup Ahlawat 6(11) ct H Desai b A Nagwaswalla

Anup Ahlawat and Nilesh Lamichaney walk out for the North East. Left-armer Arzan Nagwaswalla will operate first-up for West Zone. Ahlawat finds two runs from the over. Chintan Gaja will run in from the opposite end.

Madhav Kaushik and Aryan Juyal open the batting for Central. Manisankar Murasingh takes the new ball for East Zone. Murasingh starts with a maiden.

West Zone vs North East Zone: West won the toss and opted to field

West Playing XI: Priyank Panchal (c), Harvik Desai (wk), Rahul Tripathi, Ankeet Bawane, Sarfaraz Khan, Shivam Dube, Atit Sheth, Chintan Gaja, Parth Bhut, Shams Mulani, Arzan Nagwaswalla.

North East Playing XI: Anup Ahlawat, Imliwati, Jehu Anderson (wk), Kamsha Yangfo, Khrievitso, Langlonyamba M (C), Lee Yong Lepcha, Lerry, Nilesh Lamichaney, Palzor, Rex Rajkumar.

East Zone vs Central Zone: East Zone won the toss and opted to field.

East Playing XI: Abhimanyu Easwaran, Virat Singh, Avinav Choudhury, Kumar Kushagra (wk), Saurabh Tiwary (c), Mukhtar Hussain, Subhranshu Senapati, Shahbaz Ahmed, Utkarsh Singh, Manisankar Murasingh, Akash Deep.

Central Playing XI: Aryan Juyal (wk), Madhav Kaushik, Venkatesh Iyer (c), Rinku Singh, Shivam Chaudhary, Yash Dubey, Shivam Mavi, Aditya Sarvate, Aniket Choudhary, Karn Sharma, Yash Thakur.

The North Zone vs South Zone Deodhar Trophy match which starts at 1:30 PM IST will be streamed on the BCCI app and website today.

East Zone v Central Zone

East Zone squad: Saurabh Tiwary (c), Abhimanyu Easwaran (vc), Sudip Gharami, Subhranshu Senapati, Reshab Das, Utkarsh Singh, Kumar Kushagra, Abishek Porel, Virat Singh, Riyan Parag, Shahbaz Ahmed, Avinav Chowdhury, Mura Singh, Muktar Hussain, Akash Deep.

Central Zone squad: Venkatesh Iyer (c), Madhav Kaushik, Shivam Chaudhary, Yash Dubey, Yash Kothai, Rinku Singh, Aryan Juyal, Upendra Yadav, Karan Sharma, Aditya Sarvatey, Yash Thakur, Shivam Mavi, Aniket Chaudhary (vc), Mohsin Khan, Akash Madhwal.

West Zone v North East Zone

West Zone squad: Priyank Panchal (c), Rahul Tripathi, Harvik Desai, Het Patel, Sarfaraz Khan, Ankeet Bawane, Samarth Vyas, Shivam Dube, Atit Sheth, Parth Bhut, Shams Mulani, Arzan Nagwaswalla, Chintan Gaja, Rajvardhan Hangargekar.

North East Zone squad: Jehu Anderson (wk), Ashish Thapa, Lee Yong Lepcha, Khrievitso, Abhishek, Imliwati, Lerry, Langlonyamba M, Anup Ahlawat, Jotin Pheiroijam, Palzor, Rex Rajkumar, Nabam Abo, Kamsha Yangfo (wk), Nilesh Lamichaney

North Zone vs South Zone

South Zone: Mayank Agarwal (c), Rohan Kunnummal (vc), N. Jagadeesan (wk), Rohit Rayudu, KB Arun Karthik, Devdutt Padikkal, Ricky Bhui (wk), Washington Sundar, V. Kaverappa, V. Vyshak, Kaushik V, Mohit Redkar, Sijomon Joseph, Arjun Tendulkar, Sai Kishore.

North Zone: Nitish Rana (c), Abhishek Sharma, Prabhsimran Singh, Shubham Rohilla, S. Khajuria, Mandeep Singh, Himanshu Rana, Vivrant Sharma, Nishant Sindhu, Rishi Dhawan, Yudhvir Singh, Sandeep Sharma, Harshit Rana, Vaibhav Arora, Mayank Markande.

A host of old plotlines, accentuated by the passage of time, will come together when East Zone takes on Central Zone in a Deodhar Trophy fixture at the Cricket Association Puducherry (CAP) Ground 3 on Monday.

As the contrived identities of three randomly selected teams by the BCCI make way for the return of the more relevant inter-zonal format for the 50-over tournament, East Zone will take little inspiration from the technicality of being defending champion, having won the title in 2014-15, the last time the Deodhar Trophy was contested between zonal teams.

Captain Saurabh Tiwary and Virat Singh are the only players in the East Zone team from that title-winning squad and will be the guiding lights of an inexperienced batting line-up comprising promising talent such as Sudip Kumar Gharami, Abishek Porel and Subhranshu Senapati.

Abhimanyu Easwaran, who has only peeped through the national selection door, without being allowed a significant leeway over its threshold, will have a point to prove, especially after scores of 0 and 11 in the recently concluded Duleep Trophy.

All-rounder Shahbaz Ahmed, under-utilised by Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in IPL (Indian Premier League) 2023, will be a vital cog in balancing a team which is light on bowling resources and will hope to make a case for himself and add to his international experience of three ODIs.

His RCB teammate Akash Deep will spearhead the pace department, which will include Tripura’s Manishankar Murasingh, who picked a fifer against Central Zone in the Duleep Trophy.

Time heals but often also embarks on a cycle of bitter irony, making the regret of not progressing more pronounced. It has been four years since the 2019 ODI World Cup and the last edition of the Deodhar Trophy but Indian cricket is grappling with a similar question – what about the middle-order – especially in the wake of injuries to KL Rahul, Shreyas Iyer and Rishabh Pant.

As the home World Cup looms and the clamour for an ICC title grows louder, the Deodhar Trophy could throw up some answers. Rinku Singh, the miracle-maker of IPL 2023 who was recently included in India’s Asian Games squad, could be a contender while his Central Zone skipper Venkatesh Iyer, a stand-by for the Asiad, will also sense an outside opportunity though his lack of bowling of late hasn’t helped his cause.

However, given the pace battery at his disposal, few could blame Venkatesh if he chooses not to take the ball. Mohsin Khan, Akash Madhwal, Shivam Mavi, Aniket Chaudhary and Yash Thakur offer a tantalising array of options and form a formidable attack that will be a force to reckon with for all teams.

Meanwhile, the batting unit, stacked with personnel who average more than 50 in List A cricket (Yash Dubey, Madhav Kaushik, Rinku) and rounded off by all-rounder Aditya Sarwate, makes Central Zone a firm favourite to lift the title.

- Dhruva Prasad

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After a four-year break, the Deodhar Trophy - last held in 2019-20- returns to the Indian cricketing calendar, with the tournament set to kick off on Monday here at the Cricket Association of Pondicherry grounds.

Like the Duleep Trophy, the one-day tournament reverts to a zonal format, with the six teams playing each other once in a round-robin format on alternate days starting Monday before the top two fight for the title on August 3.

At a time when one-day cricket is fighting for relevance, this edition of the Deodhar Trophy might have a small purpose considering it is a World Cup year.

Though it is understood that the selectors have shortlisted 20 players for the prestigious event, the tournament offers players in the fringes below to show what they can do and make a last-minute impression in case a spot is available closer to the event.

With the Vijay Hazare Trophy set to be held only after the World Cup, the next two weeks could become crucial for players and the selectors to finalise backup options.

Some of the players to watch out for include the likes of pacer Shivam Mavi, all-rounder Venkatesh Iyer, Rinku Singh, and Washington Sundar, who was part of the one-day set-up as recently as the three-match series against Australia earlier this year. ​READ MORE​

- S Dipak Ragav

• North Zone vs South Zone, Siechem Stadium, Puducherry - July 24, 1:30 PM start
• East Zone vs Central Zone, CAP Ground 3, Puducherry - July 24, 9 AM start

• West Zone vs North East Zone, CAP Ground 2, Puducherry - July 24, 9 AM start

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Deodhar Trophy 2023 is not being telecast in India. Select matches of the tournament will be streamed through the BCCI website and app.