Duleep Trophy 2023: Presenting the two finalists
The 2023 Duleep Trophy final will be a rematch of the last season's summit clash as South Zone and West Zone will once again fight for the glory. The two sides won their respective semi-final clashes and are now gearing up for the ultimate affair. Bengaluru's M.Chinnaswamy Stadium will host the five-day game, starting on July 12. Here we decode the two finalists.
The rain-curtailed semi-final clashes
As the two sides appeared in the last year's final, they earned an automatic ticket to the semi-finals of this edition. Notably, both knock-out matches were affected by rain. While SZone beat North Zone by two wickets in a thriller, the game between WZone and Central Zone was drawn. Priyank Panchal's men, however, qualified on the virtue of having a 92-run first-innings lead.
Dominant WZone too good for CZone
Shivam Mavi claimed a six-fer as WZone were folded for 220 while batting first. Atit Sheth made 74. In reply, CZone could only manage 128 thanks to Arzan Nagwaswalla's 5/74. Though West Zone lost two early wickets in their second innings, Cheteshwar Pujara (133) and Suryakumar Yadav (52) helped them finish at 297. Chasing 390, CZone were 128/4 before rain abandoned the game.
SZone beat NZone in a thriller
Kaverappa claimed a magnificent fifer as North Zone dismissed South Zone for 198. Prabhsimran Singh was the top scorer with a 49-run effort. In response, South Zone could only manage 195 as Mayank Agarwal scored 76. Thanks to Vyshak's fifer, NZone were folded for 211 in their final outing. SZone successfully chased down the 215-run target though they faced a few hurdles.
A look at their previous records
West Zone are the most successful team in Duleep Trophy history with 19 titles. They are also the defending champions, having defeated South Zone by a mammoth margin of 294 in the last year's summit clash. Meanwhile, South Zone own 13 Duleep Trophy titles.
Key performers for WZone
West Zone's Cheteshwar Pujara is a veteran of 103 Tests, scoring 7,195 runs at 43.61. His teammate Sarfaraz Khan has been banging on the Indian team selection doors. He averages 76.32 in First-Class cricket. Atit Sheth scored a crucial 74 besides scalping four wickets in the semi-final. Left-arm pacer Nagwaswalla has raced to 93 wickets in 24 FC games at 24.13.
Key performers for SZone
With 990 runs at 82.50, South Zone's Mayank Agarwal was the highest run-getter of the last year's Ranji Trophy. He scored twin fifties in the semi-final. His teammate R Sai Kishore snapped 29 wickets in the last Ranji season at 31.65. Vyshak finished the last Ranji Trophy season for Karnataka with 31 wickets in eight matches at an average of 24.58.
