Bengaluru, Sep 7: South Zone and Central Zone advanced to the final of the Duleep Trophy after securing crucial first-innings leads in their respective drawn semifinals against North Zone and West Zone here on Sunday. The summit clash will now be held at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium from September 11.
South Zone ride Jagadeesan’s form
For South Zone, N Jagadeesan once again turned out to be the star performer. The Tamil Nadu batter, who had already struck a majestic 197 in the first innings, followed it up with an unbeaten 52 in the second to underline his sublime form. When play was called off, South were 95 for one in their second innings, extending their dominance after seizing a massive 175-run lead on first innings.
South had earlier piled up 536 runs, which proved too much for North Zone. Resuming on 278 for five on the final day and still trailing by 258, North tried to resist through the overnight centurion Shubham Khajuria (128) and the lower order, but regular strikes by South’s bowlers kept them in check. Gurjapneet Singh (4/96) and MD Nidheesh (3/82) were the pick of the attack as North were bowled out for 361.
Skipper Mohammed Azharuddeen credited the mammoth first-innings total for keeping his team in a commanding position. “We knew we had the cushion of 536 runs. Even when they were batting well, we always felt we were in the game, just waiting for that one mistake,” he said after the match.
Central Zone blunt Jaiswal’s resistance
In the other semifinal, Central Zone booked their spot by outlasting West Zone on first innings lead, despite Yashasvi Jaiswal’s sparkling 64 in the second innings. West finished on 216 for eight before both captains shook hands, but their earlier deficit of 162 runs meant the result was beyond their reach.
Central had earlier stretched their overnight score of 556 for eight to 600, thanks to Saransh Jain’s fighting 63 not out. For West, Ruturaj Gaikwad (16), Jaiswal (64) and Shreyas Iyer (12) all fell without converting their starts, leaving skipper Shardul Thakur (6) and Tanush Kotian (40) to delay the inevitable. Jain (5/84) and Harsh Dubey (3/96) shared the bowling honours.
Thakur admitted that the failure to capitalise in the first innings — West were bowled out for 438 — cost his team dearly. “Some of our shot selection on Day 1 let us down. My run-out was also a turning point. If we had crossed 500, this game could have taken a different direction,” he reflected.
Injury blow for West
West Zone also suffered a setback as wicketkeeper Harvik Desai picked up a right quadricep injury that required an MRI scan. He was replaced mid-match by Saurabh Nawale of Maharashtra.
Final without key players
While South and Central will now contest the final, both sides will be without several star players who have been called up to the India A squad for two red-ball matches against Australia A. The likes of Jagadeesan, Devdutt Padikkal, Harsh Dubey, Yash Thakur and Khaleel Ahmed are among those set to miss the decider as they assemble in Lucknow on September 12.
Despite these absences, the Duleep Trophy final promises to be a fascinating battle, with South riding on the momentum of Jagadeesan’s prolific form and Central boasting a deep batting order led by Saransh Jain and supported by an incisive spin attack.
Brief scores
South Zone 536 & 95/1 in 24.4 overs (N Jagadeesan 52 not out; Auqib Nabi 1/23) drew with North Zone 361 in 100.1 overs (Shubham Khajuria 128, Nishant Sidhu 82; Gurjapneet Singh 4/96, MD Nidheesh 3/82).
Central Zone 600 (Saransh Jain 63 not out) drew with West Zone 438 & 216/8 (Yashasvi Jaiswal 64; Saransh Jain 5/84, Harsh Dubey 3/96). (PTI)
