AI Simulation, SZ vs CZ | Danish Malewar stars as Central dethrone South to win Duleep Trophy

‌Pitch & Weather

The Bengaluru pitch looked a touch dry, with even bounce, on the first day, helping the batters early on. However, the surface wore out and the cracks on the strip brought the spinners into contention during the second half of the game.

The weather was warm and stayed clear throughout, except for some spells of rain in the afternoon session during the second and third days. 

Toss & Conditions

Central Zone won the toss and elected to bat first.

Lineups

South Zone: Tanmay Agarwal, Narayan Jagadeesan (wk), Devdutt Padikkal, Mohit Kale, Mohammed Azharuddeen (c), Ricky Bhui, Salman Nizar, Tanay Thyagarajan, Gurjapneet Singh, Vasuki Koushik, MD Nidheesh.

North Zone: Aayush Pandey, Danish Malewar, Shubham Sharma, Rajat Patidar (c), Yash Rathod, Upendra Yadav (wk), Harsh Dubey, Saransh Jain, Deepak Chahar, Yash Thakur, Khaleel Ahmed.

Match Report

The Duleep Trophy 2025 final at the Centre of Excellence Ground in Bengaluru produced a gripping five-day battle as Central Zone edged South Zone by 35 runs to clinch the title. Danish Malewar shone with the bat for Central with a century in the first innings and a fifty in the second, while the spin duo of Harsh Dubey and Saransh Jain picked up eight wickets each to restrict South’s batting might.

Central’s decision to bat first was justified by Malewar, who compiled a masterful 142, a knock that included 18 fours and a six. He was well-supported by Shubham Sharma (88) and captain Rajat Patidar (64), who notched up half-centuries. Their disciplined batting stretched the total to 431, a score that put the pressure squarely on South Zone. For the South, left-arm pacer Gurjapneet Singh was the most successful bowler with figures of 4/121, while Kerala pacer MD Nidheesh chipped in with three wickets.

South’s reply with the bat was built around the dependable and in-form Narayan Jagadeesan. The Tamil Nadu wicketkeeper-batter hit 14 fours and two sixes during his stoic 132, and Devdutt Padikkal’s elegant 72 ensured that they reached 367. Central still had a slender 64-run lead, thanks largely to Saransh Jain’s probing 4-wicket haul.

Central looked to bat South out of the game in the third inning with Malewar (67) once again shining with a half-century. His Vidarbha teammate Yash Rathod’s (52) steady half-century took Central’s leave past the 300-run mark. But Gurjapneet’s fiery 5/64 helped skittle out the tail and brought South back into the game. Central ended with 289, leaving South 354 to win on a wearing surface.

The chase began nervously, but Jagadeesan (96) and Padikkal (88) stitched a mammoth 148-run partnership that had South fans dreaming. At 2/197, South seemed favourites, but Central’s spin duo of Harsh Dubey (5/79) and Saransh Jain (4/118) ran through the lower middle order. From 276/5, South collapsed and was finally bowled out for 318.

Player of the Match

Danish Malewar was adjudged Player of the Match for anchoring both innings with the bat and helping Central to a huge score.

Scorecard