After choosing to bat first, North East Zone struggled to find their footing and were bundled out for a paltry total of 101 runs in just 32.1 overs.
The North Zone bowlers wreaked havoc, with spinner Mayank Markande and pacer Mayank Yadav being the chief destroyers.
Markande claimed an impressive four-wicket haul, conceding only 14 runs in his 9.1 overs, while Yadav took three wickets, giving away 21 runs in his six-over spell.
Seamers Vaibhav Arora, Rishi Dhawan, and left-arm orthodox spinner Nishant Sindhu contributed with one wicket each.
North East Zone’s batting woes were evident from the beginning, with opener Ashish Thapa dismissed for a duck by Arora, and Palzor Tamang caught behind by Prabhsimran Singh for 10 runs off Dhawan’s bowling.
Markande’s crucial breakthrough came when he dismissed North East Zone’s captain, Langlonyamba Meitan Keishangbam, for a hard-fought 36 runs from 69 balls – the highest individual score for his team.
Yadav wreaked havoc in the lower-middle order, taking three quick wickets of Kangabam Priyojit (1), Kamsha Yangfo (0), and Rex Rajkumar (1), leaving North East Zone reeling at 61 for six in the 17th over. Markande added two more wickets to complete his four-wicket haul.
Chasing the modest target, North Zone faced an early setback when opener Shubham Khajuria was run out for six in the third over. However, Prabhsimran and Himanshu Rana teamed up to take charge of the innings and guide their team to victory.
Prabhsimran played an aggressive knock of 40 not out off just 35 balls, including seven fours and a six. Rana proved to be even more destructive, smashing 52 not out off 33 balls, comprising nine fours and a six, as they comfortably reached the target of 102 in just 12.5 overs.
Their unbeaten partnership of 93 runs for the second wicket proved to be the match-winning contribution for North Zone. Despite trying out six different bowling options, North East Zone failed to break the partnership and succumbed to yet another defeat.
This victory was only the second for North Zone in the 50-over competition, helping them climb to the fourth spot in the points table. In contrast, North East Zone continued to struggle, having lost all five of their matches, and are languishing at the bottom of the table.
(With PTI inputs)
