Archive · 31 Aug 2026
Duleep Trophy Semifinals: East Zone Restrict Central; South Zone Lead
Two Duleep Trophy semifinal matches began on Sunday.
East Zone bowled first against Central Zone and dismissed them for 266 runs.
Rinku Singh scored 60 runs and helped Central Zone recover after several early wickets.
He and Harsh Dubey added 55 runs together.
Abhijit Sarkar and Mukesh Kumar led East Zone’s bowling with three wickets each.
Mohammed Shami and Md Kounain Quraishi took two wickets apiece.
In the other match, South Zone bowled North Zone out for 195.
South Zone ended the day at 40/2, still 155 runs behind North Zone.
East Zone dismissed Central Zone for 266 in 80.1 overs after choosing to bowl first in Bengaluru.
Abhijit Sarkar and Mukesh Kumar took three wickets each, while Mohammed Shami and Md Kounain Quraishi claimed two apiece.
Rinku Singh top-scored with 60 off 88 balls and shared a 55-run sixth-wicket partnership with Harsh Dubey.
Yash Thakur’s unbeaten 30 off 26 balls helped Central Zone recover from 221/9 and pass 250.
In the other semifinal, Vidwath Kaverappa took 4/66 as South Zone dismissed North Zone for 195 before reaching 40/2.
- Who
- East Zone, Central Zone, South Zone and North Zone, with notable performances from Abhijit Sarkar, Mukesh Kumar, Mohammed Shami, Rinku Singh and Vidwath Kaverappa.
- What
- East Zone bowled Central Zone out for 266, while South Zone dismissed North Zone for 195 and reached 40/2.
- When
- The opening day, Sunday, August 30.
- Where
- The semifinals were played in Bengaluru at the BCCI Centre of Excellence; reports identify the East-Central match as Ground 2, while one report identifies it as Ground 1.
- Why
- East Zone chose to bowl first and used its seam attack to take regular wickets; South Zone gained an advantage through Vidwath Kaverappa’s four-wicket haul.
- Competition
- Duleep Trophy semifinals
- Central Zone innings
- 266 all out in 80.1 overs
- East Zone leading bowlers
- Abhijit Sarkar 3/38 and Mukesh Kumar 3/56
- Central Zone top scorers
- Rinku Singh 60 off 88 balls and Aryan Juyal 46
- North Zone innings
- 195 all out in 59.1 overs
- South Zone score
- 40/2 at stumps
- First-innings deficit
- South Zone trailed North Zone by 155 runs
Sources
Mukesh, Sarkar bowl out Central Zone for 266
Duleep Trophy: Sarkar, Mukesh, and Shami bowl out Central Zone for 266 despite Rinku’s fifty
Abhijit Sarkar, Mukesh Kumar restrict Central Zone to 266 in Duleep Trophy semi-final
How unsung Abhijit combined with Shami and Mukesh to restrict Central Zone
