Duleep Trophy 2025, Final, SZ vs CZ: Valiant South efforts not enough as win remains formality for Central

The penultimate day of the Duleep Trophy 2025 final witnessed South Zone putting up a good fight, but the match is heavily inclined in Central Zone’s favour. At stumps on Day 4, South Zone were bowled out for 426 in their second innings, posting Central Zone a target of 65 runs for victory. With just a session likely needed on the final day, Central is on the brink of clinching the title.

Overnight batters could not resist Central’s attack, as wickets fell at regular intervals. With the scoreboard reading 222/6, it looked like the contest would not last till tea. However, C. Andre Siddarth and Ankit Sharma gave a solid fight. Together, they stitched a brilliant partnership.

While Siddarth anchored the innings, Ankit played the aggressor role. The pair stitched a 192-run stand for the seventh wicket against the spin duo of Saransh Jain and Kumar Kartikeya, who had dominated earlier phases.

Lunch saw South recover to 249/6, and by tea, the partnership had gone past 150. However, Ankit fell short of a century, dismissed on 99 by Kartikeya while attempting a big shot. Siddarth held the other end, finishing unbeaten on 84. Their stand gave South a respectable total of 426 and a push heading into the final day.

For the Central Zone, Kartikeya (4/110) and Saransh Jain (3/130) eventually did the bulk of the damage, while Deepak Chahar and Kuldeep Sen chipped in with crucial wickets. Despite the long stand, Central were always ahead due to their first-innings lead of 362 runs.

Central will be happy with their performance over the four days and will hope to finish things off on the final day of the game. If the team manages to win, this will record their sixth Duleep Trophy title since the start of the tournament in 1961-62.

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