Vidarbha's Danish Malewar continued his excellent first-class form with a career-best score in the Duleep Trophy opener on Thursday (August 28).
Danish Malewar scores unbeaten 198 on day one of Duleep Trophy 2025
The first assignment of the 2025-26 domestic season for Malewar came for Central Zone (CZ) against North East Zone (NEZ) on Thursday, at the BCCI Centre of Excellence 'B' Ground. This was his first appearance in the competition, having made his first-class debut only last year.
Read more: Live updates from Duleep Trophy 2025 quarterfinals
NEZ skipper Jonathan Rongsen put CZ in to bat, and the bowling team were rewarded in the third over as Akash Kumar got rid of opener Ayush Pandey. That brought the 21-year-old Malewar to the crease.
He put on 144 alongside wicketkeeper Aryan Juyal, before the latter retired hurt on 60. CZ skipper Rajat Patidar then joined Malewar, who had made his way past the 50-run mark by this point.
2nd Quarter Final, Central Zone vs North East Zone
vs
- Ball by ball Over
Malewar was the first of the pair to make it past three figures, even as Patidar went on to lash an 80-ball century studded with 18 fours and two sixes. Their stand was worth 199, when Patidar was dismissed for 125.
Thereafter, Malewar began to accelerate, finding the boundary with regularity. After tea, a boundary down the ground took him from 153 to 157, a new personal best. He struck 35 fours before hitting his first six to go from 190 to 196. Stumps were called early due to bad light which quickly turned into rain, at which point Malewar was unbeaten on 198.
This innings was Malewar's fifth fifty-plus score in four first-class matches. His previous game was by far the most memorable of his short career thus far; the 2024-25 Ranji Trophy final in March, where he made 153 in the first innings and 73 in the second to help Vidarbha win the title. As of stumps on day one, he has 981 runs to his name in 10 first-class matches, at an average of 65.4.
Danish Malewar: record in first-class cricket
| For | Against | Date | Scores |
| Vidarbha | Andhra Pradesh | October 11, 2024 | 8 & 61 |
| Vidarbha | Uttarakhand | October 26, 2024 | 56 & 42 |
| Vidarbha | Himachal Pradesh | November 6, 2024 | 59 |
| Vidarbha | Gujarat | November 13, 2024 | 115 |
| Vidarbha | Rajasthan | January 23, 2025 | 17 |
| Vidarbha | Hyderabad | January 30, 2025 | 13 & 3 |
| Vidarbha | Tamil Nadu | February 8, 2025 | 75 & 0 |
| Vidarbha | Mumbai | February 17, 2025 | 79 & 29 |
| Vidarbha | Kerala | February 26, 2025 | 153 & 73 |
| Central Zone | North East Zone | August 28, 2025 | 198 (batting) |
Image credit: JioHotstar
Follow Wisden for all cricket updates, including live scores, match stats, quizzes and more. Stay up to date with the latest cricket news, player updates, team standings, match highlights, video analysis and live match odds.
