India, Sept. 3 -- Skipper Tilak Varma played a second successive influential knock, guiding South Zone to the Duleep Trophy final with a seven-wicket win over North Zone on the fourth and final day of the semifinal on Wednesday. Chasing 181, South Zone got the job done in the first two sessions of the day after Tilak (51 not out) and Ravichandran Smaran (32 not out) milked 80 runs for the unbroken fourth-wicket stand.

South ended with 182 for three towards the end of the second session, and they will face East Zone in the title clash in Chennai from September 6.

Tilak, who had made an unbeaten 116 in the first innings to help South gain a match-clinching 117-run lead, came to the middle when his side was wobbling at 102 for three.

But ...