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Nagpur: Sudeep Tyagi and Munaf Patel blew away India Blue for a paltry 84 before the India Red batsmen knocked off the target without much fuss to lift the Challenger Trophy in Nagpur.
Tyagi started the demolition job with a fine spell of seam bowling. He was off radar during the Irani Cup, often bowling very short, but he was on song from the first ball today. He varied from back of a length to full and punctuated his offcutters with the one that straightened outside off.
Tyagi struck first ball with a peach of a delivery that pegged back from outside off to knock out the off stump of Naman Ojha, who had shouldered arms.
He then got one to cut back in from a fuller length to nail SS Kumar in front before troubling Harbhajan Singh with his bouncing offcutters from short of a length. Suddenly, he hurled one fuller to catch Harbhajan on the crease and knocked out off stump. If Tyagi can consistently reprise his today's efforts, he will be knocking on the selectors' doors.
Those three wickets had broken Blue's back and Munaf, who bowled first change today, settled in his rhythm quickly to cause further havoc. There is an opening in the Indian team and Munaf, sensing that, has been bowling really well right from the Irani Cup. Today, again, he operated at his best. He again hit the full length and found enough movement, nothing visually alarming but just enough, to cause trouble.
The third seamer, Ishant Sharma, tried to hit a fuller length but offered enough width outside off time and again to relieve the pressure but R Ashwin, the offspinner, bowled well to prevent Blue from breaking free.
Shikhar Dhawan and M Vijay got Red off to a steady start, negotiating a good spell from Sreesanth. Vijay, who was dropped by Ojha off Sreesanth when he pushed at a length delivery that shaped away, fell to Harbhajan but Dhawan hung around long enough to ensure the target would be reached without much alarm.
Brief score
India Green: 84 (Munaf 4-21, Tyagi 3-20) by 7 wickets
India Red: 85 for 3 (S Dhawan 38)
Result: India Red beat India Green by 7 wickets
Series: India Red won the 2009/10 NKP Salve Challenger Trophy
