Duleep Trophy: Saurabh Kumar claims his 25th FC fifer
India D gained a significant 67-run lead over India B in the ongoing third-round match of the 2024 Duleep Trophy in Anantapur. Left-arm spinner Saurabh Kumar was the pick of the India D bowlers as he claimed a remarkable five-wicket haul. He was particularly lethal against the tail-enders as India B went from 246/6 to 282 all-out. Here are his stats.
A fine spell from Saurabh
Saurabh opened his account by getting the better of Suyash Prabhudessai for 16. While the other top-order batters were unfazed by him, tail-enders Rahul Chahar, Navdeep Saini, and Mohit Avasthi couldn't do much against Saurabh's brilliance. The left-arm spinner completed his fifer with the prize scalp of Washington Sundar, who made 87. Notably, India D posted 349 batting first thanks to Sanju Samson's 106.
25th FC fifer for Saurabh
Saurabh finished with 5/74 across 18.3 overs. As per ESPNcricinfo, he has now raced to 312 wickets across 72 First-Class games at an average of 24-plus. Meanwhile, Saurabh recorded his 25th five-wicket haul. He also owns 10 match fifers. While Saurabh missed the opener of the ongoing Duleep Trophy, he claimed three wickets in his preceding outing.
Call-up to the Indian team
Notably, Saurabh earned his maiden Team India call-up for the home Test series against Sri Lanka in March 2022. The 31-year-old was also a part of the Test team for the away Test series against Bangladesh in December 2022. Though the southpaw did not get opportunities in these series, the UP cricketer is certainly on the selectors' radar.
