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Central Zone dominated the opening day of the Duleep Trophy final, dismissing South Zone for a mere 149. Spinners Saransh Jain (5/49) and Kumar Kartikeya (4/53) wreaked havoc, exploiting South's batting frailties. Central Zone's openers, Danish Malewar (28*) and Akshay Wadkar (20*), then built a solid foundation, reaching 50 without loss at stumps, reducing the deficit to 99.

South Zone secured their place in the Duleep Trophy final against Central Zone by virtue of their first-innings lead, capitalizing on favorable bowling conditions to dismiss North Zone. Central Zone also advanced, their match against West Zone ending in a draw. The final is set to begin on September 11.

South Zone and Central Zone secured final spots in Duleep Trophy 2025 after first-innings leads. Both teams face player shortages due to India A commitments, adding uncertainty to the final.

Ruturaj Gaikwad utilized his injury layoff to refine his red-ball technique, acknowledging he still has progress to make. He scored 184 for West Zone in the Duleep Trophy semifinal, following a century in the Buchi Babu tournament. Gaikwad also welcomed MS Dhoni's remark about his return strengthening CSK's batting in IPL 2026.

Ruturaj Gaikwad continues to showcase his class in red-ball cricket after his stellar 184-run knock in the Duleep Trophy semis against Central Zone. His knock propelled the West Zone to put a fighting first-innings total.

The Indian domestic season is all set to start with the Duleep Trophy starting on August 28. With the selectors keeping a keen eye on domestic performances, the players will be eager to impress during the tournament being played in Bengaluru.

The 2025–26 domestic season begins with the Duleep Trophy in Bengaluru, a tournament doubling as auditions for vacancy in India's Test line-up. With questions over No. 3, No. 6 and pace depth, batters like Devdutt Padikkal, Shreyas Iyer and Sarfraz Khan, along with bowlers Mohammed Shami and Mukesh Kumar, aim to impress selectors ahead of home Test series against West Indies and South Africa.

The Indian home cricket season of 2025-26 starts with the Duleep Trophy. The tournament begins on August 28. It ends on September 15. The zonal format returns with North, South, East, West, Central, and North East zones competing. Matches will occur at the BCCI Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru. South Zone and West Zone enter directly into the semi-finals.