Deodhar Trophy, As it Happened: India C thumps India B ahead of final

Catch all the LIVE scores, updates and commentary from the India B vs India C Deodhar Trophy match from the JSCA International Stadium Complex, Ranchi.

Axar Patel's brilliant knock of 98 runs from just 61 deliveries helped India C post a good total batting first. (File Photo)

Hello and welcome to Sportstar's LIVE coverage of the third match of Deodhar Trophy between India B and India C from the JSCA International Stadium Complex, Ranchi.

That's it for today! Tune in again on Monday when India B takes on India C in a repeat of today's game. See you!

So all three games in this year's Deodhar Trophy have been won by the team batting first. Think both captains will want to bat first in the final as well.

India C gets bragging rights over India B ahead of the final on Monday (November 4). Axar Patel and Virat Singh's partnership in the first innings was the key. Mayank Markande and Jalaj Saxena ran through the India B middle order in the second innings. Baba Aparajith was the lone contributor with the bat for his team.

• GAME OVER! Ishan Porel completes the formalities. Rush Kalaria tried to clear mid-off but Shubman Gill was well placed to complete the catch. India C wins by 136 runs! There were 38 balls remaining in the innings.
• APARAJITH IS OUT!! He departs for a patients 53 runs off 90 balls. Ishan Porel sends the middle stump for a ride. Mohammed Siraj is the last batsman in.
• HALF-CENTURY! Baba Aparajith's good form continues. He reached the 50-run mark in 82 balls. Aparajith has put up a lone fight in the second innings so far. Finally something to cheer for India B.

• India B has scored 28 runs and lost three wickets in the last ten overs. It needs 147 more runs to win in 60 balls.
• EIGHT DOWN! Shahbaz Nadeem is Mayank Markande's fourth wicket of the day. He nicely tossed up the ball and Nadeem went for a wild slog sweep. Diwesh Pathania at deep mid-wicket made no mistake at all. Rush Kalaria replaces Nadeem now.  
• AND GONE! Anukul Roy tried to go for a leg glance and a good take from the wicket-keeper Dinesh Karthik. But was there an edge? The umpire raises his finger and Anukul is absolutely stunned. It looked like a wide. Shahbaz Nadeem is the next man in.
• OUT! Axar Patel did it with the bat and now he does it with the ball. Vijay Shankar is out leg before wicket. He had no clue while playing the delivery. Anukul Roy walks in at No. 8.

• India B needs 175 runs from 120 balls to win this Deodhar Trophy match against India C.
• AND THE CAPTAIN DEPARTS! Parthiv Patel was trying to tuck one past mid-wicket but unfortunately for him he found the fielder Anmolpreet Singh. India B is five down now! Vijay Shankar is the new batsman.
• ANOTHER WICKET! Mayank Markande opens his account. Nitish Rana was struck plumb in front. India C is clearly in the driver's seat right now. Rana made 1 off 7. He will be replaced by the India B skipper Parthiv Patel.
• GONE! Jalaj Saxena strikes again! Kedar Jadhav makes the long walk back to the pavilion. He went for the slog over long on but completely mistimed the shot and got a top edge. The ball was in the air for a very long time and Ishan Porel did very well to hang on the catch. Nitish Rana walks in.

• Kedar Jadhav replaces Jaiswal in the middle. India B requires 202 runs from 180 balls to win this game against India C.
• OUT! Yashasvi Jaiswal departs for a very slow 28 off 61 balls. Yesterday's seven-wicket star Jalaj Saxena gets his first scalp today. Axar Patel took the catch.
• WICKET! Ruturaj Gaikwad is castled by Diwesh Pathania. He made 20 runs off 24 balls, which included fours shots to the boundary. Baba Aparajith is the new man in.

• CLOSE! India C almost inflicted a run-out. Yashasvi Jaiswal should be more careful from here on.
• It's been a slow start by the India B openers. Both of them have faced a lot of dot balls.

Yashasvi Jaiswal and Ruturaj Gaikwad will open the innings for India B. Ishan Porel will take the new ball for India C.

• End of Innings: A blinder of an innings from Axar Patel propels India C to a competitive total of 280 for the loss of five wickets. Axar's contribution has been vital as he slammed an unbeaten 98 off 61 deliveries and his knock was studded with 13 boundaries and three sixes. Narrowly missed out on a ton but India C will believe they can pull this off. Virat Singh needs a special mention as he scored an unbeaten 76 off 96 deliveries and it was the 154-run stand between them that saw India C post a solid total. Shall be back for the chase in a while.

Fifty for Axar Patel: Top stuff from Axar Patel as he brings up his fifty in 46 deliveries. Along with Virat Singh, the all-rounder has been terrific with the bat. Time now for a late flourish.

FIFTY for Virat Singh: Excellent fifty from the southpaw and he has played a responsible innings. Came into bat when his side was in trouble and although wickets kept falling, Virat held fort and has played the sheet anchor role.

• Virat Singh and Axar Patel are ticking the scorecard with Virat playing the role of an aggressor. Virat being the set batsmen is going for his shots and is trying to up the ante.
• WICKET - Against the run of play and part-timer Nitish Rana gets the prized scalp of Dinesh Karthik. Slower through the air, plenty of turn, Karthik lunges forward for a drive, leaves plenty of gap between bat and pad and the ball sneaks through the gate to disturb the timber.
• The fifty run partnership between Dinesh Karthik and Virat Singh is up and the duo have manage to arrest the slide after their side suffered two quick blows. Plenty of work still needs to be done as the India B bowlers are keeping things tight.

• Virat Singh and Dinesh Karthik are slowly building a partnership and this will be vital for India C. There has been a change in bowling with Nitish Rana being introduced  into the attack. The pitch has shown signs of supporting spin.

WICKET - Shahbaz Nadeem picks his second wicket as he castles the in-form Suryakumar Yadav. The Mumbai batsmen played a blinder on Friday but not today. Classic left-arm spinner delivery, pitches in middle and spins, beats Suryakumar's defence to clip the top of off-stump. Top class!

WICKET - Shahbaz Nadeem strikes as he removes Anmolpreet Singj. After Siraj strikes, it's the turn of Nadeem to celebrate and India C lose two set batsmen.

• Both Mohammed Siraj and Shahbaz Nadeem have been bowling in tandem and were not letting the batsmen rotate the strike easily. They were building the pressure and finally the move paid off with Siraj dismissing Priyam Garg. Deserves all the credit for setting up the batsmen. Top bowling.
• WICKET - Mohammed Siraj strikes and he gets rewarded for persisting with line and length. Bowls an inswinger and Priyam Garg pays the price for playing across the line, misses the ball and gets trapped. Easy decision for the umpire.
• After losing skipper Shubman Gill, Anmolpreet Singh and Priyam Garg have started the recovery with both batsmen playing some delightful shots. Anmolpreet, especially is looking in good touch, timing perfectly and playing according to the merit of the ball.

• WICKET - Vijay Shankar gets the prized scalp of Shubman Gill and Parthiv Patel will be a relieved skipper. Gill slammed his highest List A score on Friday but unfortunately it's not his day today.

Toss Update: India C opts to bat first.

Playing XI:

India B: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Parthiv Patel(w/c), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Nitish Rana, Baba Aparajith, Kedar Jadhav, Vijay Shankar, Anukul Roy, Shahbaz Nadeem, Mohammed Siraj, Roosh Kalaria

India C: Virat Singh , Shubman Gill(c), Anmolpreet Singh, Suryakumar Yadav, Priyam Garg, Dinesh Karthik(w), Axar Patel, Mayank Markande, Jalaj Saxena, Diwesh Pathania, Ishan Porel

Shubman Gill slams his highest List A score

They don't call him the run-machine in domestic cricket for nothing. Player of the 2018 U-19 World Cup,  Shubman Gill  is known for his predilection for big runs and Friday was no different. The India C captain slammed 143 off 142 balls (10x4, 6x6) to hand his team the upper hand in a  Deodhar Trophy  tie against India A at the JSCA International Stadium Complex in Ranchi.

This also happens to be the Punjab opener's highest List A score surpassing his unbeaten 123 against Karnataka during the 2018  Vijay Hazare Trophy.

Gill, who led India A in the second unofficial Test against South Africa A in September, has been in terrific form of late. He scored 90 and 92 in the first innings of the first and second unofficial Tests against South Africa A, respectively. Not just that, his unbeaten double century against  West Indies A  at Tarouba in August, this year, earned him his maiden India Test call-up. However, he is yet to feature for the national Test side.

India C, on Friday, set India A a target of 367 runs, sailing on centuries from  Mayank Agarwal  and Gill. Suryakumar Yadav added a quickfire 72 off just 29 deliveries towards the end.