Subramaniam Badrinath will lead defending champions South Zone against Central Zone in the semi-final of the Duleep Trophy that gets underway at the MAC on Saturday.

Apart from last year’s triumph, it was under Badrinath’s captaincy that South Zone regained Duleep Trophy in 2009 after a lengthy drought. Leg-spinner Piyush Chawla is Central’s skipper.

Not too long ago, a hapless Tamil Nadu were sent on a leather hunt by the eventual Ranji champions Rajasthan upon a featherbed.

Both teams are stacked with heavy batting power. Which means, there is absolutely no doubts that the team that calls right at the toss, will bat first.

But this time around, the strip has a bit of grass cover on it. South skipper was quick to observe and commented: “The wicket seems to have a bit of moisture on it. It may be slightly better than the Ranji final strip. In fact, I am expecting it to be a little quicker.”

Badri added that his team have the right ingredients to put it past Central. As far as the team composition is concerned, we will look to go in with three fast bowlers.

Stuart Binny, who bowls seam up, adds teeth with his all-round abilities. Batting remains our strength and we would like to make the most of it this time.

Abhinav Mukund, Robin Uthappa and Manish Pandey all are quality batsmen and I am confident that they will deliver. It’s unlucky that Vijay is out due to an injury.

Duleep Trophy, which used to be a marque event on the national calendar, has lost its gloss in the recent past.

Constant changes in playing format to the period cricket haven’t helped its cause either. However, many players would still want to climb the ranks into the national team through some commendable performances.

And no one better than Tamil Nadu’s warhorse, Badrinath and Dinesh Karthik, know that better. Dinesh, in particular, was in ominous touch this season.

His solo effort during Ranji final was a standout and only underlined his undying determination. The duo would want to make the most of it and show the selectors that they belong in the top tier.

Badri’s deputy, Abhinav, was the top-scorer in TN’s Ranji campaign. And once set, he would prove to be a thorn in Central’s flesh.

Seasoned campaigners Robin Uthappa and Pragyan Ojha would also look to leave a mark while it also gives a chance to players like J. Kaushik, Manish Pandey and Abhimanyu Mithun to showcase their mettle.

Leg-spinner Piyush, who is leading at the Duleep Trophy for the first time, sounded optimistic on the eve of the match. “We have a handful of talents from the triumphant Rajasthan squad.

Vinit Saxena, Robin Bist and Rituraj Singh have had excellent season and I hope it carries on. Jalaj Saxena, the other spinner in our lineup, looks a good bet.

Our team bats pretty deep as it is packed with all-rounders. Mohammed Kaif, Naman Ojha and Tanmay Srivatsava are the other important players in the Central ranks.

Though it looks a tall order for Central to put it past the hosts, Piyush begged to differ. “If we play to our potential, we’ll be hard to beat. South are strong opponents but we won’t get intimidated,” added Piyush.

Squad: South Zone: S. Badrinath (captain), Abhinav Mukund (vice captain), Dinesh Karthik, Yo Mahesh, J. Kaushik, Robin Uthappa, Manish Pandey, Abhimanyu Mithun, Amith Varma, Stuart Binny, KP Appanna, Sony K Cheruvathur, Pragyan Ojha, P. Akshath Reddy, Syed Ahmed Quadri. Coach: Edwin Joseph.

Central Zone: Piyush Chawla, Robin Bist, Bhuvaneswar Kumar, Naman Ojha, Paradkar, Jalaj Saxena, Rituraj Singh, T. Sudhindra, Ashish Yadav, Mohd. Kaif, Mohnish Mishra, Pankaj Singh, Parvinder Singh, Vinit Saxena, Tanmay Srivatsava. Coach: Gnanendra Pandey.

Umpires: Amish Saheba and Subrat Das. Match referee: Sanjay Patil. 3rd umpire: BK Sadashiv.
Hours of play: