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N Jagadeesan’s unbeaten 52 helped South Zone secure a 175-run lead over North Zone, advancing to the Duleep Trophy final against Central Zone starting September 11.
Narayan Jagadeesan playing a shot during South Zone’s Duleep Trophy fixture against North Zone
N Jagadeesan scored an unbeaten 52 to maintain South Zone’s dominance as they advanced to the Duleep Trophy final with a 175-run first-innings lead against North Zone on Sunday.
South Zone will face Central Zone in the tournament’s final, starting here on September 11.
South Zone reached 95 for one when the game was called off, with Jagadeesan, who had earlier struck a brilliant 197 in the first innings, remaining not out on 52 from 69 balls, including six fours. Devdutt Padikkal was at the other end with an unbeaten 16.
North Zone, under pressure after South Zone amassed 536 in the first innings, resumed play on Sunday at 278 for five, trailing by 258 runs. Shubham Khajuria, who scored a gritty century on the third day to reach 128, was dismissed without adding to his overnight score, bowled by Vasuki Koushik in the second over of the final day.
Khajuria’s innings ended at 128 off 252 balls, featuring 20 fours and a six. Sahil Lotra (19) and Mayank Dagar (31) tried to delay the inevitable, adding 47 runs for the seventh wicket, but their partnership did not trouble South Zone much. The South Zone bowlers continued to strike regularly, eventually bowling North Zone out for 361 in 100.1 overs, securing a significant first-innings lead.
Gurjapneet Singh was the standout bowler for South Zone, taking 4/96, while MD Nidheesh claimed 3/82 from his 19 overs. Koushik and Tanay Thyagarajan took one wicket each.
With a substantial lead and only one possible outcome, South Zone batters adopted a measured approach to reach 95 for one in 24.4 overs before the draw was enforced.
South Zone captain Mohammed Azharuddeen commented after the game that their first-innings score of 536 put them in a strong position.
“Yes, to be honest, they were batting really well, but we knew we had that cushion because of the huge runs and we were just waiting for one mistake, and we got it. Even before that, we had one chance; we dropped it, but eventually, we got the wicket. So, we were always in the game because we had the cushion of 536 runs,” Azharuddeen told the media.
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, Ayush Badoni 40, Nishant Sidhu 82; MD Nidheesh 3/82, Gurjapneet Singh 4/96).
(With Agency Inputs)
A cricket enthusiast whose dreams of playing for India paved the way for a compelling journey in journalism. With a comprehensive coverage spanning international and domestic cricket across formats, I have had …Read More
A cricket enthusiast whose dreams of playing for India paved the way for a compelling journey in journalism. With a comprehensive coverage spanning international and domestic cricket across formats, I have had … Read More
September 07, 2025, 17:17 IST
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