Despite a fighting unbeaten 128 from opener Shubham Khajuria, South Zone held the upper hand at stumps on day three of the Duleep Trophy 2025/26 semi-final at the BCCI COE Ground 1 in Bengaluru on Saturday. North Zone closed the penultimate day at 278/5, still trailing by 258 runs.
North’s reply began poorly as pacer Gurjapneet Singh struck early, trapping captain Ankit Kumar leg before in the sixth over and later bowling Yash Dhull (14). MD Nidheesh added to the pressure by dismissing Ayush Badoni (40), leaving the side in trouble at 79/3.
Khajuria then steadied the innings with a composed knock, first adding 63 with Badoni before forging a 171-run stand with Nishant Sindhu. The pair dominated the second session, ensuring it went wicketless. Sindhu, who impressed with a five-wicket haul with his left-arm spin on Friday, played fluently for his 82 off 148 deliveries, while Khajuria brought up his fifty from 107 balls.
Rain briefly halted play with Khajuria stranded on 97, but the Jammu & Kashmir batter soon raised his eighth first-class hundred off 204 balls after resumption. South Zone, however, clawed back late in the day, removing Sindhu and running out wicketkeeper Kanhaiya Wadhawan to check North’s momentum.
With Khajuria unbeaten on 128, North Zone’s hopes of avoiding a first-innings deficit rest heavily on him and the lower order on the final day.
Brief Scores: South Zone 536 in 169.2 overs (N Jagadeesan 197; Nishant Sindhu 5-125) lead North Zone 278/5 in 79 overs (Shubham Khajuria 128 not out, Nishant Sindhu 82; Gurjapneet Singh 3-67, Nidheesh MD 1-67) by 258 runs
Batters take Central closer to final.
Fifties from Shubham Sharma (96), Upendra Yadav (87), Rajat Patidar (77) and Harsh Dubey (75) powered Central Zone to a commanding position on day three of the Duleep Trophy semi-final against West Zone, being played at the BCCI COE Ground 2. Central closed on 556/8, securing a first-innings lead of 118 runs and moving within touching distance of the final.
At stumps, Saransh Jain (37 not out) and Yash Thakur (4 not out) were at the crease, with Central looking to stretch their advantage further on the final day.
West Zone tried everything, even turning to part-timers Shreyas Iyer and Yashasvi Jaiswal, but struggled for breakthroughs. Left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja toiled hard for figures of 4/101, with little support from the rest of the attack.
The day had started promisingly for West as they picked up three wickets in the morning session. But Dubey and Yadav’s 134-run sixth-wicket stand not only steadied Central but also pushed them firmly into the lead. Though none of Central’s batters converted their starts into a century, the collective effort has given them a sizeable cushion heading into the final day.
Brief Scores: Central Zone 556 for 8 (Shubham 96, Upendra 87, Jadeja 4-93) lead West Zone 438 (Gaikwad 184, Kotian 76, Dubey 3-118, Jain 3-121) by 118 runs