Deodhar Trophy 2023: Vidwath Kaverappa rattles NZone with career-best 5/17
South Zone's Vidwath Kaverappa breathed fire against North Zone in their opening clash of the 2023 Deodhar Trophy in Puducherry. The speedster was sensational with the ball as he claimed his maiden List A fifer. Kaverappa finished with 5/17 as he ran through the NZone batters. Courtesy of his bowling, NZone were bundled out for 60 as SZone registered a 185-run triumph (DLS method).
A match-winning spell from Kaverappa
The Karnataka pacer was in red-hot form, with conditions favoring his swing bowling. He removed Abhishek Sharma first, followed by Shubham Khajuria, Prabhshimran Singh, and Nitish Rana in his first three overs as NZone were reduced to 19/4. While the rain stopped play for some time, Kaverappa returned to scalp Sandeep Sharma and complete his maiden List A fifer.
A look at his List A numbers
Courtesy of his five-wicket haul, Kaverappa has now registered 22 List A wickets in nine matches at an average of around 13. The 24-year-old also maintains an economy rate of less than four. Before this, he claimed only one four-fer. Kaverappa had a sensational Vijay Hazare Trophy as he scalped 17 wickets in eight matches. He finished as the third-highest wicket-taker of the tournament.
A spectacular tournament for Kaverappa
Kaverappa snapped 15 wickets in the recent 2023 Duleep Trophy and guided SZone to the title. Although he was the second-highest wicket-taker behind Saurabh Kumar, he was named the Man of the Tournament for his heroics. He claimed an eight-wicket match haul in the final.
How did the match match out?
SZone had a flying start, with Rohan Kunnummal (71), and Mayank Agarwal (64) adding 117 runs together. Later, Narayan Jagadeesan slammed a 72 to help them post 303/8. In reply, Kaverappa reduced NZone to only 19/4 inside five overs. Eventually, Kaverappa finished with figures of 5/17 as NZone were bundled for 60. SZone registered a massive 185-run triumph (DLS method) despite incessant rain.
