Formidable Bengal emerged champions in the East Zone Women’s Twenty20 Cricket Tournament, defeating Jharkhand by 35 runs in their fourth and last league match at DRIEMS ground in Tangi (Cuttack) today. Bengal topped the league table with 12 points from three wins.
Assam finished runners-up, defeating Tripura by six runs in their last match, which was reduced to 12 overs due to fog. Assam also garnered 12 points with three wins, but settled with the second position on the basis of net run rate (0.416 against Bengal’s 1.2125).
The top two finishers of the East Zone league qualified to compete in the inter-zonal tournament. Jharkhand and host Orissa finished third and fourth respectively in the East Zone league with eight points each from two wins, while Tripura occupied the fifth and bottom place, losing all four of their league matches.
Former Australia all-rounder Michael Bevan, who is also the newly appointed coach of the Orissa Ranji team, inaugurated the nine-day tournament in the presence of Orissa Cricket Association secretary Asribad Behera, DRIEMS chairman Pramod Chandra Rath, OCA joint-secretary Sanjib Kumar Dutta earlier on January 16.