Duleep Trophy Final: Saransh Jain’s dream run gives Rajat Patidar’s Central Zone advantage

Central Zone are on course to win their first Duleep Trophy after a decade's wait.

The Duleep Trophy final began with a twist at the BCCI’s CoE as Central Zone’s spinners dominated a turning track to leave South Zone in tatters on the opening day. Saransh Jain’s second straight five-wicket haul, supported ably by Kumar Kartikeya’s four-for, bowled South out for just 149. By stumps, Central Zone’s openers had already erased a third of that deficit, reaching 50 without loss. It is fair to say that Rajat Patidar will win another trophy as a captain in 2025!

Central Zone chokehold South Zone with spin

Day one was always going to be about the spinners, but few expected so much turn so early in the game. Under overcast skies and on a surface that looked greenish at first glance, Kartikeya and Jain quickly found bite and bounce. Once South Zone’s openers survived the new ball, Kartikeya drew first blood by bowling Mohit Kale. His double strike in the morning, combined with a calamitous run-out of Tanmay Agarwal, pushed South into a corner at 57 for 4.

The afternoon belonged to Jain. Operating in tandem with Kartikeya, he tormented the middle order with drift and sharp turn. Ricky Bhui was trapped lbw, Andre Siddarth fell stumped after a wild charge, and Salman Nizar gloved one to slip as South slid further. By the time Jain had wrapped up the tail with a straight one to Ankit Sharma, South were bowled out for 149 in 63 overs. Central Zone’s chokehold on South continued as Kartikeya finished with 4 for 53 and Saransh took a fifer.

In reply, Danish Malewar and Akshay Wadkar were unflustered in tricky evening conditions. They struck a handful of crisp boundaries off Gurjapneet Singh and Ankit Sharma to reach 50 without loss, narrowing the gap to just 99 runs and leaving South with plenty to ponder.

Saransh Jain continues dream run

If Central Zone’s dominance had a face, it was Saransh Jain’s. The 32-year-old off-spinner has been enjoying a golden run of form over the past few weeks. Coming into the final fresh from a match-winning spell in the semi-final against West Zone, where he dismissed heavyweights like Shreyas Iyer and Shardul Thakur, Jain once again rose to the occasion.

This was his third consecutive five-wicket haul in first-class cricket, following his 5 for 84 against West Zone and 5 for 138 against Uttar Pradesh in the Ranji Trophy. With Thursday’s figures, he now has 144 wickets in 44 first-class games at an average of 27.7, to go with a batting average over 27. Though yet to receive a national call-up, he has featured for India A and Rest of India, and performances like these only strengthen his case. It is great to see a Jain propping up, finally!