After losing four wickets in the first session, South Zone looked down and out, with Central Zone sensing victory. However, a gritty 192-run stand for the seventh wicket between Ankit Sharma (99) and Andre Siddarth (84*) ensured South avoided an innings loss. The Duleep Trophy final will now head into the final day, with Central set to chase 65 runs.
Ankit, batting at No. 8, fought brilliantly after the team lost wickets in quick succession, but he fell agonisingly short of his second first-class century.
Kumar Kartikeya, who claimed four wickets, denied Ankit the century as the left-handed batter attempted a big shot to reach the three-figure mark. Rajat Patidar brought most fielders inside the inner circle, tempting Ankit to take the risk — and the South Zone batter fell into the trap.
Patidar, the Central Zone skipper, was also involved in the run-out of MD Nidheesh. After Ankit’s dismissal, the tail didn’t last long, as South Zone were bowled out for 426. Saransh Jain picked up two of the last three wickets to finish with figures of 3 for 130.
Siddarth remained unbeaten. The young Tamil Nadu-based batter showed maturity, holding one end firmly. His approach was comparatively subdued than Ankit, who was playing his shots.
During a phase in the second session, Central Zone pacers employed a short-ball ploy against Ankit. Although the southpaw struggled, he didn’t throw his wicket away. Deepak Chahar and Aditya Thakare couldn’t make the most of the second new ball, failing to create any real chances. Run-scoring became relatively easy after the 80th over.
Overnight batters Ricky Bhui and Smaran Ravichandran began positively and negotiated the first hour without much trouble.
However, the stand was broken when Chahar found the edge of Bhui’s bat. South Zone captain Mohammed Azharuddeen had a couple of lives during his short stay but couldn’t make them count.
Even Smaran, who had crossed fifty, was dropped once but failed to build on the opportunity. Kartikeya struck three times in the later part of the morning session. While Kartikeya took the wickets, Saransh kept things tight from the other end.
Brief Scores: South Zone 149 (Tanmay Agarwal 31, Salman Nizar 24; Saransh Jain 5-49, Kumar Kartikeya 4-53) and 426 (Ankit Sharma 99, Andre Siddarth 84; Kumar Kartikeya 4-110, Saransh Jain 3-130) vs Central Zone 511 (Yash Rathod 194, Rajat Patidar 101; Gurjapneet Singh 4-124, Ankit Sharma 4/180).