The 2025 Duleep Trophy semi-finals started on Thursday (September 4). Find the round-up of all the action from day three right here.
Semi-final 1: South Zone v North Zone
In response to South Zone's first-innings score of 536, spearheaded by India backup keeper Narayan Jagadeesan's 197, North Zone slipped to 38-2. Captain Ankit Kumar, who struck 198 against East Zone in the quarter-finals, and Yash Dhull, who scored 133 in the same match, both fell to Gurjapneet Singh for six and 14 respectively. A partnership was starting to take shape, but Ayush Badoni – who hit a double century in the previous match – also perished for 40, leaving North Zone at 101-3.
Then, a 171-run stand between opener Shubham Khajuria and Nishant Sindhu got the scoreboard moving for North Zone before Gurjapneet broke the partnership by dismissing Sindhu for 82. One wicket quickly followed another as wicketkeeper Kanhaiya Wadhawan was run out for a duck, with North Zone slumping from 272-3 to 272-5. Khajuria remained unbeaten at stumps, having scored his century off 205 balls.
Sindhu, who represented India A at the Emerging Teams Asia Cup last October, has now scored 491 runs at an average of 61.38 in first-class cricket this year.
Score at stumps, day three: South Zone 536 (N Jagadeesan 197, Nishant Sindhu 5-125) vs North Zone 278-5 (Shubham Khajuria 128*, Gurjapneet Singh 3-67)
1st Semi-Final, South Zone vs North Zone
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- Ball by ball Over
Semi-final 2: West Zone v Central Zone
Resuming on their overnight score of 229-2 in reply to West Zone's 438, Central Zone delivered a collective batting effort. Captain Rajat Patidar, who needed just three more runs to complete his half-century, reached the milestone in 62 balls, with a four. Just when he was looking good for a second consecutive century, he was bowled by Dharmendrasinh Jadeja for 77 off 84 balls, an innings that included 14 fours. Patidar continues his dream run, having led Royal Challengers Bengaluru to their maiden IPL title earlier this year and starting the domestic season with a blazing 80-ball hundred in the quarter-finals.
Other Central batters to hit half-centuries were No. 3 Shubham Sharma and wicketkeeper Upendra Yadav (87). Central Zone finished the day at 556-8. They now have a chance to surpass the highest first-class team score on Indian soil without an individual century. The record is currently with Madhya Pradesh, who made 605 in the 1998-98 Ranji Trophy against Haryana, with a high score of 90.
Score at stumps, day three: West Zone 438 (Ruturaj Gaikwad 184, Harsh Dubey 3-118) vs Central Zone 556-8 (Shubham Sharma 96, Dharmendrasinh Jadeja 4-101)
2nd Semi-Final, West Zone vs Central Zone
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- Ball by ball Over
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