Central Zone is the champion of the Duleep Trophy 2025 by defeating South Zone by 6 wickets. They won this prestigious domestic trophy 6 times.
For the outstanding century of 194 runs, Yash Rathod won the man of the match award.
Saransh Jain took 16 wickets in just 2 games and helped his team to become the champion. He took 16 wickets with an average of 24 and became the Man of the Series.
Central Zone vs South Zone Final Scorecard
Here is the brief scorecard of the Duleep Trophy 2025 final.
| Team | Innings | Runs Scored | Lead / Win | Best Batting Performance |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| South Zone | 1st | 149/10 | – | Tanmay Agarwal (31 off 76), Saransh Jain (5/49) |
| Central Zone | 1st | 511/10 | Lead by 362 runs | Yash Rathod (194 off 286), Gurjapneet Singh (4/124) |
| South Zone | 2nd | 426/10 | Lead by 65 runs | Ankit Sharma (99 off 168), Kumar Kartikeya (4/110) |
| Central Zone | 2nd | 66/4 | Won by 6 wickets | Akshay Wadkar (19 off 52), Gurjapneet Singh (2/21) |
First Innings: Central Zone In Command With 362 Runs Lead
South Zone reached the final by playing a draw against North Zone in the 1st semifinal, while Central Zone also played draws in 2nd quarter-final and 2nd semi-final to face North Zone in the final.
In the final, Central Zone won the toss and decided to bowl under the captaincy of Rajat Patidar. Central Zone bowlers made the most of the new ball and dismissed the South Zone half team for only at the score of 65.
Their middle order batters try to stabilize the inning, but Kumar Kartikeya 4/53 and Saransh Jain 5/49 outclassed South Zone batters, and the team bowled out at 149.
After restricting the South Zone to below 150, the Central Zone batters played sensibly and got the first-inning mammoth lead of 362 runs. Their four batters scored 50+, with Rajat Patidar scoring 101 off 115, and Yash Rathod missing his double century by six runs as he made a daddy hundred of 194 off 286, with the help of 17 fours & 2 sixes.
With the loss of 10 wickets, they scored 511 runs and became the favorite to become the champion.
Second Innings: South Zone’s Fightback To Avoid Inning Defeat
After a poor performance in both departments, South Zone came to play in the 2nd inning, where their batters countered Central Zone bowlers very well. They tried to overcome the lead but lost 6 wickets at 222. It was expected that Central Zone would win the match on the 4th day itself, as South Zone was 140 runs behind and had only four wickets left.
However, their lower middle-order batsmen fought back, where Andre Siddarth C (84 off 190) and Ankit Sharma (99 off 168) had a 7th wicket partnership of 192 runs. As they both fell after a steady partnership of almost 200 runs, none of the tailenders could survive. They lost the last three wickets at just 12 runs and finished the 2nd inning with 426 runs.
Their resistance saved their team from a humiliating inning defeat and set the target of 64 runs. Kumar Kartikeya and Saransh Jain were again the pick of the bowlers as they shared 7 wickets in this inning.
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Final Chase: Central Zone Lifted The Trophy
After getting the target of 65 runs, Central Zone batters played desperately, making the chase a little nervy. However, the target was not big enough to bother them, and they chased down the target in 20.3 overs with 6 wickets.
Their first-inning hero, Yash Rathod, hit the winning boundary and helped his team lift the Duleep Trophy 2025 by 6 wickets.
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