Double centurions and hat-trick heroes: Uncapped players outshine established names in Duleep Trophy 2025 quarterfinals

Duleep Trophy 2025 quarterfinals: Danish Malewar, Auqib Nabi play starring roles

North Zone vs East Zone

North Zone were put in to bat first on day one, and it was a team effort that saw them eventually post 405. Kanhaiya Wadhawan (76) and Ayush Badoni (63) scored half-centuries, but Nishant Sindhu chipped in with 47 and Auqib Nabi with 44 off 33 from No.9. Ten of the eleven made it to double figures, and Harshit Rana contributed seven.

Jharkhand left-arm spinner Manishi stood out with the ball in the first innings, taking six wickets. Notably, he became the just the sixth player in first-class cricket history to dismiss six batters lbw in a single innings, after Mark Ilott (1995), Chaminda Vaas (2005), Tabish Khan (2011), Ollie Robinson (2021) and Chris Wright (2021).

East Zone were holding firm at 222-5 in their reply, but J&K seamer Auqib Nabi triggered a collapse by taking four wickets in four balls. He finished with 5-28 as the innings folded for 230. With the first-innings lead secure, North Zone batted on and on, as stand-in skipper Ankit Kumar made a career-best 198, India U19 World Cup-winning captain Yash Dhull scored 133 and Badoni helped himself to an unbeaten double century on Duleep Trophy debut. Sindhu also scored 68, following his first-innings 47.

Result: North Zone 405 (Kanhaiya Wadhawan 76, Manishi 6-111) & 658-4d (Ayush Badoni 204*, Suraj Sindhu Jaiswal 1-77) DREW with East Zone 230 (Virat Singh 69, Auqib Nabi 5-28). North Zone qualified for semifinals via first-innings lead.

Central Zone vs North East Zone

In the second quarterfinal, North East Zone put Central Zone in to bat. This was also a run-fest, as they recovered from the early loss of Ayush Pandey. Opener Aryan Juyal was forced to retire hurt on 60, but 21-year-old Vidarbha batter Danish Malewar scored 203 before retiring out, in a rare occurrence. Skipper Rajat Patidar flayed an 80-ball century before being dismissed for 125, and Yash Rathod was unbeaten on 87 when the declaration came.

They then bowled North East out for a paltry 185, the wickets shared between Deepak Chahar (1-25), Khaleel Ahmed (2-36), Aditya Thakare (3-23) and Harsh Dubey (2-20).

A reshuffled batting order in the second innings saw Malewar open in Juyal's absence, but he was dismissed for 15. Shubham Sharma, in at No.3, made his 12th first-class century and Rathod scored 78 to follow his first-innings knock. Patidar impressed once again, with a brisk 66 off 72 balls. With 679 to win, North East were never really in the chase but Jehu Anderson and Rongsen Jonathan both compiled half-centuries, as Sharma chipped in with 2-10 with the ball, including the wicket of the former.

Result: Central Zone 532-4d (Danish Malewar 203, Akash Choudhary 2-103) & 331-7d (Shubham Sharma 122, Akash Choudhary 2-44) DREW with North East Zone 185 (Karnajit Yumnam 48, Aditya Thakare 3-23) & 200-6 (Jehu Anderson 64, Shubham Sharma 2-10). Central Zone qualified for semifinals via first-innings lead.

How did the India players fare in the Duleep Trophy quarterfinals?

Harshit Rana (North Zone)
Batting: 7 (11) | Bowling: 14-3-56-2

Rana contributed one six from No.10 in the first innings, and had a decent outing with the ball, returning figures of 2-56 in 14 overs. Both his wickets were of top three batters, Utkarsh Singh for 38 and Sridam Paul for seven.

Arshdeep Singh (North Zone)
Batting: 12* (2) | Bowling: 17-3-51-1

Arshdeep's two sixes with the bat were enough to earn him a spot alongside Muthiah Muralidaran and Shivam Dube as the only three players to record a score of 12 off two balls in a first-class innings.

More pertinently though, he sent down 17 overs for the solitary wicket of opener Sharandeep Singh, but kept a lid on the scoring rate – conceding 51. While the returns did not stand out, he did tell ESPNCricinfo on day three that he felt the ball was coming out of his hand well, particularly considering that this was his first competitive match since the IPL.

Riyan Parag (East Zone)
Batting: 39 (47) | Bowling: 22-0-78-1

Leading East Zone, Parag had a quiet time of things. His 39 with the bat came at a good clip and included two sixes, and he was eventually the one to dislodge Dhull in the second innings, sending down 22 overs of off-spin. The biggest regret for him will perhaps be the lack of another opportunity to shine in the competition.

Mohammed Shami (East Zone)
Batting: 1 (8) | Bowling: 23-4-100-1 & 11-1-36-0

Shami was not picked for India's recent Test tour of England, but did manage to get through 23 and then 11 overs here. He rapped Wadhawan on the helmet with a sharp bouncer, but like his India colleagues Arshdeep and Rana, was not among the wickets with 1-136 across the match.

Mukesh Kumar (East Zone)
Batting: 6* (7) | Bowling: 14.5-1-50-0

More than being unimpressive, Mukesh had a worrying game. He pulled up with injury on day one after bowling 14.5 overs, and did not bowl at all in the second innings.

Rajat Patidar (Central Zone)
Batting: 125 (96) & 66 (72)

Patidar was by far the standout among the capped Indian players on show. It would be hard to ask for much more than scores of 125 and 66 with the bat, along with two catches, a run out and safe passage to the semifinals.

Kuldeep Yadav (Central Zone)
Bowling: 20-4-55-0 & 12-2-42-0

Kuldeep's returns in this game might have provided a tiny sense of satisfaction to the Indian team management that did not pick him at all during the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy. Against North East Zone, on paper the weakest of the six teams in the competition, he sent down 32 wicketless overs in the match.

He can take solace in the facts that he was not expensive, going at a shade over three to the over and that there is at least one more chance for him to get back to wicket-taking ways.

Deepak Chahar (Central Zone)
Bowling: 9-1-43-1 & 6-1-21-0

Chahar has not played for India since December 2023, and has struggled with injuries over the past year or so. He was another who had a lukewarm outing. His volume of overs was low, with just nine and six in the two innings. He took just one wicket, that of No.10 Akash Choudhary and conceded at nearly five an over in the first innings.

Khaleel Ahmed (Central Zone)
Bowling: 9.3-1-36-2 & 8-0-34-0

Khaleel remains a contender for the Indian Test team, and had slightly better returns than a couple of other capped players (although in this round, that was not the highest of bars). His two wickets in the match were of the North East No.8 and No.9, and he went wicketless in the second innings.

Image credits: Instagram / auqib_nabi / daniiish_01

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