West Zone appear favourites but East Zone's form gives them the edge as the two teams clash in the Deodhar Trophy finals.

Known for their batting depth, West Zone have, surprisingly, struggled to put up a concerted effort. In their first match against South Zone, it was the individual brilliance of skipper Wasim Jaffer which took the team through.

The team will yet again bank on the dependable Jaffer, who recently led Mumbai to their 38th Ranji Trophy triumph.

West opening combination yet to deliver

Their opening combination of former India wicketkeeper Parthiv Patel and talented Ajinkya Rahane is yet to give the side a good start.

In the middle-order, Cheteshwar Pujara has the ability to play defiant innings but his orthodox style has not benefitted his cause in the shorter version of the game.

Pujara scored an unbeaten 50 from 100 balls against Zimbabwe President's XI yesterday, but it was his Saurashtra teammate Ravindra Jadeja who hit a 13-ball 28 not out to help the side notch a bonus point victory.

"We have made the final with bonus points from both the matches. I don't think there is any problem in any of the department. We are confident of a good show against East also," coach Debu Mitra told PTI, adding that their injured medium-pacer Jitendra Patil has been replaced by Saurashtra seamer Jayesh Odedara. West suffered an early setback yesterday when their Patil was ruled out of the match and the tournament after twisting his ankle while bowling.

Pujara stars in West Zone win

"Odedara, who was in the stand-bye, has been brought in place of Patil. I don't think it will be a factor," Mitra insisted.

For East Zone, it is their team spirit that has done the trick so far in this tournament.

In Manoj Tiwary, East have a talented and energetic skipper who has focussed on team unity.

"Team spirit and backing each other has been our main strength in this tournament. After coming here I have told the boys about the importance of playing as a team. Most in our side are youngsters representing different units, but I have made sure that they play as a team and compliment each other on the field," Tiwary said.

Wriddhiman Saha has been good for East Zone

Talented wicketkeeper batsman Wriddhiman Saha has been the pick of the batsmen, giving the side a perfect start with his opening partner Natraj Behera.

Jamshedpur youngster Ishank Jaggi has been a revelation with an unbeaten century against North Zone that helped the team get past the 300-mark. In bowling, the experienced Ranadeb Bose will take the charge with the mercurial Ashok Dinda, even as the fifth option continued to be a worry.

Tiwary had to bowl a full spell in the previous after fifth bowler Tushar Saha gave away 21 runs in his three overs.

The team think-tank is contemplating replacing Saha with either Assam all-rounder Sibsankar Arabinda Roy or Orissa left-arm pacer Pritamjeet Das.

The pitch, which is yet to be used in the tournament, may be a concern for both the players who have already complained about the slowness of the Barabati wicket.

West Zone have won the Zonal One-Dayers eight times with the last one coming in 2006-07 season. East, who last won this tournament in 2003-04, have won the title four times.

Squads

West Zone: Wasim Jaffer (c); Parthiv Patel (wk); Ajinkya Rahane; Cheteshwar Pujara; Ravindra Jadeja; Kamlesh Makwana; Abhishek Nayar; Iqbal Abdulla; Bhavik Thaker; Siddharth Trivedi and Jayesh Odedara.

East Zone: Manoj Tiwary (c); Wriddhiman Saha; Natraj Behera; Ishank Jaggi; Saurabh Tiwary; Deepak Sharma; Rakesh Mohanty; Dhiraj Goswami; Ranadeb Bose; Ashok Dinda and Sibsankar Arabinda Roy.

Umpires: Amiesh Saheba and Shavir Tarapore; Match Referee: Bhaskar Pillai.