Duleep Trophy Semi-Final: West Zone vs Central Zone - Day 2 Recap,

 Duleep Trophy Semi-Final: West Zone vs Central Zone - Day 2 Recap , Top performers 

Morning Session:

The second day of the Duleep Trophy semi-final began with West Zone (WZ) resuming their first innings at 216/8. CT Gaja and Arzan Nagwaswalla were at the crease. However, Central Zone's (CZ) captain, Shivam Mavi, made an impact early on, taking the wickets of Nagwaswalla and Y. Jodia. WZ could only add 4 runs in the morning session and were bowled out for 220

CZ started their first innings with bat, but their opening batsmen had a difficult time facing the WZ bowlers. Vivek Singh fell in just the third ball of the innings, bowled by Nagwaswalla. In the last ball of the second over, CT Gaja dismissed CZ's second opener, Himanshu Mishra. CZ found themselves struggling at 2/6. Dhruv Jurel and Amandeep Khare came to the crease to rebuild the innings.

Jurel showcased his class, scoring a quickfire 46 runs off just 55 balls. However, Amandeep fell victim to Gaja, leaving CZ in a challenging position at 26/3. Rinku Singh joined Jurel, and the pair managed to form a 43-run partnership before Jurel was dismissed by Nagwaswalla. Upendra Yadav also fell early to Nagwaswalla's bowling. At lunch, CZ was 87/5, trailing WZ by 133 runs.

After Lunch:


Rinku Singh and Saransh Jain aimed to build a partnership for CZ, but Nagwaswalla struck again, taking the wicket of Jain. Saurabh Kumar came to the crease but was dismissed by Atit Sheth when he had scored 12 runs off 11 balls. CZ's captain, Shivam Mavi, also struggled and was dismissed by Sheth after scoring just 1 run off 9 balls. On the very first ball of Avesh Khan, Sheth claimed his wicket as well. Rinku Singh continued to score runs, with Yash Thakur providing support. However, Nagwaswalla dismissed Singh when he was on 48 runs.

Nagwaswalla finished with a five-wicket haul, while Gaja took two wickets, and Sheth claimed three wickets. CZ added only 36 runs after lunch and were bowled out for 128. WZ took a significant 92-run lead from CZ's first innings.

Second Innings - West Zone:

In their second innings, WZ's openers, Prithvi Shaw and P. Panchal, made starts but failed to convert them into big scores. Shaw was dismissed for 25 runs by Yash Thakur, while Panchal fell for 15 runs to Saurabh Kumar. Cheteshwar Pujara and Suryakumar Yadav aimed to rectify the batting mistakes from the first innings.

Yadav played a quick innings, scoring 50 runs, while Pujara also reached his half-century but at a slower pace. At the end of the day, Yadav was dismissed for 50 runs by Saurabh Kumar. Pujara and Sarfaraz Khan remained not out, and WZ's lead increased to 241 runs.

An interesting fact is that Saurabh Kumar became the only spinner to take three wickets for both teams in the match so far. The pitch has proven to be seamer-friendly, with 20 wickets falling in just two days.

Day 2 - Top Performances:

• Arzan Nagwaswalla (WZ): Nagwaswalla displayed excellent bowling skills, taking a five-wicket haul in CZ's first innings. He continued to trouble the opposition batsmen, ending the day with figures of 5/42.

• CT Gaja (WZ): Gaja made significant contributions with the ball, claiming two important wickets in CZ's first innings. His disciplined bowling helped maintain pressure on the opposition.

• Dhruv Jurel (CZ): Jurel played a crucial innings, scoring 46 runs off just 55 balls, showcasing his talent and ability to stabilize CZ's innings.

• Rinku Singh (CZ): Singh provided some resistance in CZ's batting lineup, contributing valuable runs. He made 48 runs before being dismissed by Nagwaswalla.

• Atit Sheth (WZ): Sheth made an impact with both bat and ball. He claimed three important wickets in CZ's first innings and also contributed with the bat later in the day.

The match is finely poised as WZ holds a commanding lead going into the third day of play. CZ will aim to make a comeback with their bowling attack, while WZ will look to extend their lead and put themselves in a strong position