New Zealand Emerging Players 116 for 8 (Guptill 24, Kulkarni 3-14) beat India Emerging Players 110 (Jadeja 42, Arnel 3-7) by 4 runs (D/L method)
Scorecard
New Zealand topped the league phase of Emerging Players Tournament after beating India in a rain-curtailed contest at the Allan Border Field. The match was initially reduced to 31 overs, and finally to 20, and India fell short of New Zealand's 116 by four runs.
Both teams failed to build momentum during their innings with wickets falling frequently. India sent New Zealand in and struck immediately - Manpreet Gony dismissed Jesse Ryder for a duck. Martin Guptill added 34 with Peter Ingram for the second wicket, the highest partnership of New Zealand's innings. Guptill was bowled by Dhawal Kulkarni for 24 and New Zealand lost seven wickets for 71 runs.
Kulkarni had the best figures among India's bowlers, taking 3 for 14. Ravindra Jadeja picked up 2 for 32 with his left-arm spin.
India's revised target under the Duckworth/Lewis method was a moderate one - 115 off 20 overs - but their chase started disastrously. Brent Arnel ripped through the top order, taking 3 for 7, and barring Shikhar Dhawan, none of the top six got into double figures. The chase was salvaged by Jadeja, who capped an all-round performance by scoring 42, and Pinal Shah who made 22. However, Jadeja was run out by Bradley Scott and the tail folded with the score on 110.
New Zealand face the Australian Institute of Sports, who finished second in the league, in the final of the tournament on July 26. India will take on South Africa Emerging Players in the third-place play-off.
Australian Institute of Sports 208 for 1 in 25 overs (Warner 119*, Doropoulos 65) beat South Africa Emerging Players 166 for 8 in 21.4 overs (O'Keefe 3-19) by 32 runs (D/L method)
Scorecard
David Warner struck an unbeaten 119 to help secure Australia's second spot in the league with a 32-run victory against South Africa in a rain-shortened match at the Albury Oval. He shared an opening partnership of 125 with Theo Doropoulos, who scored 65, and steered Australia towards a match-winning total of 208 in 25 overs.
Rain delayed the start and reduced the match to a 36-overs-a-side contest. Australia raced to 115 after 15 overs before there was another interruption in play. On resumption the match was curtailed to 25 overs a side and once the Australian innings finished on 208, South Africa's target was scaled up to 224 off 25 overs.
South Africa's chase never took off with wickets falling at a steady pace. Eight batsmen got into double figures but no one made a substantial score. Wicketkeeper Daryn Smit's 33 at No. 8 was the highest score.