Duleep Trophy: Target was to stay in front of wicket as long as I could, says Easwaran

Easwaran's century powers South Zone to 399

Ruturaj Gaikwad struck a 184-run knock as West Zone bundled out North Zone for 233 in their second innings to win the quarterfinal of the Duleep Trophy by 294 runs at the Reliance Stadium in Vadodara on Wednesday.

Resuming the day on 29/2, the North Zone batsmen failed to counter the West Zone bowlers, losing wickets at regular intervals.

Easwaran was dismissed by left-arm spinner Saurabh Kumar in the 161st over, bringing an end to his valiant knock.

South Zone reach 399 after Easwaran's ton

Young opener Abhimanyu Easwaran struck a brilliant century as South Zone reached 399 in their first innings against North Zone on the second day of their Duleep Trophy quarterfinal at the Reliance Stadium in Vadodara on Tuesday.

Resuming the day on 218/4, South Zone lost the wicket of nightwatchman Ravisrinivasan Sai Kishore in the fifth over of the day, reducing them to 223/5.

Easwaran, who was unbeaten on 89 overnight, continued to bat with determination and reached his century in the 110th over of the innings.

He was finally dismissed for 132 off 278 balls, including 15 fours and a six, having batted for almost seven hours.

South Zone eventually declared their innings on 399, giving them a first-innings lead of 140 runs.