East Zone defeated Central Zone by 4 wickets to enter the Duleep Trophy 2026 final
Mohammed Shami and Mukesh Kumar's probing bowling ended up to be the difference maker
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi contributed with his power-packed cameo as well
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi's cameo sat well with fiery spells by Bengal pacers Mohammed Shami and Mukesh Kumar, powering East Zone to the Duleep Trophy final with a four-wicket win over defending champions Central Zone on the third day of the semifinal here on Tuesday.
The 2012-13 season winners will face either South Zone or North Zone in the final at Chepauk, starting on September 6.
Shami and Mukesh shared seven wickets among them to bundle out Central for 158 in their second innings, and then scaled down the 159-run target despite a mini slump in the middle.
On a pitch that offered increasing turn to spinners, it was vital for East to make a solid start to hunt down the target of 159.
Sooryavanshi (40, 43b) played an innings of two faces — his first 15 runs came off 30 balls, a stark contrast to his 42-ball fifty in the first innings, and contained just a six off pacer Aryan Pandey.
But the remaining 25 runs came in 13 balls which had another six and three boundaries.
However on the other side, his opening partner Abhimanyu Easwaran was outpacing him, scoring a six off off-spinner Saransh Jain over long-on.
Sooryavanshi, who offered a broad bat to spinners, could only be awakened by the sight of pacer Yash Thakur, whom he had carted for four fours and two sixes in the first dig.
In this innings, the left-hander blasted the pacer for three fours and a six in the 14th over.
But the 15-year-old perished in the same over, as Rajat Patidar took a stunning running catch off Thakur.
The dismissal of Sooryavanshi covered East Zone innings’ with a blanket of silence. They began to lose wickets at regular intervals as the chase suddenly appeared steeper than it was in the beginning.
Left-arm spinner Harsh Dubey jettisoned Kumar Kushagra and Anukul Roy in successful balls to reduce East to 124 for five.
But skipper Ishan Kishan (39 not out, 41b) played an assured innings in the middle-order to guide his side home without too many hiccups from that point.
Earlier, Central resumed from 45 for three, and their outing did not get any better on the penultimate day either, losing the remaining seven wickets in the first session which was extended for 30 minutes after the fall of the ninth wicket.
Shami (3/56) and Mukesh (4/44), the two bowlers who are out of India's scheme, were the main tormentors.
Mukesh, who bagged a seven-wicket haul in the match, was later adjudged the Player of the Match. The award will be a boost for the out of favour India seamer who had lost better part of the
The two veteran players found the right lengths on a pitch that offered a hint of variable bounce to trouble the batters, reducing them to 97 for eight.
The Central managed to go past 150, courtesy a 43-run stand between Dubey and Arshad Khan for the ninth wicket.
It stretched East but could not break them as they lined themselves up for a title for the first time since 2012-13.
“From a personal point of view, and not only me, the entire team members are looking forward to playing in the final. It will be heartening if we can go on and win that title,” said Easwaran after the match.
