AG Punjab, Tamil Nadu in final

CHANDIGARH: AG Punjab continued its dominance by thrashing AG-II Maharashtra by eight wickets to set a title clash with AG Tamil Nadu in the Inter-zonal Indian Audit and Accounts department (IA&AD) cricket tournament on Thursday.
In the first semifinal played at Sector 16 Cricket Satdium, AG Punjab thrashed AG-II Maharashtra by eight wickets after putting them into batting.
AG-II Maharashtra scored 149 runs for the loss of nine wickets in the allotted 35 overs. Ruchit Bhalla topscored with 46 runs and Amit Despawde scored 28 runs to swell the total.
Rajiv Bhatia was the pick of the bowlers scalping 4wickets by giving away 24 runs in 7 overs, including hat-trick in the last over of the innings. He was ably supported by Arun Tuli (2/43) and Yogesh Sharma (2/38). Left arm spinner Navdeep Singh bowled a miserly spell of seven overs and conceding just nine runs.
In reply, AG Punjab achieved the target in 30.2 overs. AG Punjab had a poor start when opener Manoj Rajan was clean bowled on the first delivery of the innings. But, opener Navdeep Singh continued with his good form and played a brilliant knock of unbeaten (70;84b,6x4) runs and took his team to victory. He was ably supported by southpaw Arun Tuli who remained unbeaten on 67;84b 4x4).
In the second semifinal, AG Haryana lost to AG Tamil Nadu by six runs. AG Haryana won the toss and decided to field first.
AG Tamil Nadu scored 187 all out in stipulated 37 overs. Vijay Bharatran (69) was the highest scorer. R Chandrashekaran also chipped in with a quickfire 58 runs. For AG Haryana, Bipul Sharma scalped three wickets by giving away 39 runs and Parveen Sharma scalped two wickets (2/20).
In reply, AG Haryana could score only 181 for the loss of 9 wickets in 37 overs. G Gambir was top scorer with 96 runs. Bipul Sharma and Parveen Sharma scored 33 and 21 runs, respectively. For AG Tamil Nadu, R Pandiaraj (3/32) and EN Josemidhol (2/29) contributed with the ball. The bowlers bowled a tight line and gave nothing to the batsmen. In the end it was an easy victory for Tamil Nadu.
Brief Scores: (AG-II Maharashtra): 149 for 9 in 35 overs (Ruchit Bhalla 46, Amit Despande 28, Rajiv Bhatia 4/24, Arun Tuli 2/43, Yogesh Sharma 2/38); (AG Punjab): 151 for 2 in 30.2 overs (Navdeep Singh 70 no, Arun Tuli 67 no); (AG Tamil Nadu): 187 all out in 37 overs (Vijay Bharatran 69, R Chandrashekaran 58, Bipul Sharma 3/39, Parveen Sharma 2/20); (AG Haryana): 181 for 9 in 37 overs (G Gambir 96, Bipul Sharma 33, Parveen Sharma 21, R Pandiaraj 3/32, EN Josemidhol 2/29); Friday's match: (final): AG Punjab vs AG Tamil Nadu at Sector 16 Cricket Stadium (10 am).