Duleep Trophy highlights: Double tons from Ayush Badoni, Danish Malewar headline run-rich quarter-finals

Two one-sided affairs in the Duleep Trophy kick off India’s new domestic season. The opening week saw bat dominate ball in both Duleep Trophy quarter-finals. Runs flowed at the BCCI’s CoE, with Ayush Badoni’s brilliant double hundred and Danish Malewar’s maiden 200 standing out in a pair of lop-sided contests that ended on the fourth day.

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Badoni, Ankit and Dhull power North Zone

North Zone secured their passage into the semi-finals against East Zone on the back of some magnanimous batting. Yes, East Zone bowlers had nowhere to hide as they saw a whopping lead of 833 against them. Mohammed Shami didn’t bowl after one point, Mukesh Kumar was injured in the first innings itself.

After piling up 405 in the first innings, they bowled out East for 230 thanks to Auqib Nabi’s stunning spell of 5/28, which included four wickets in four balls — only the third hat-trick in tournament history after Kapil Dev and Sairaj Bahutule.

With a lead of 175, North Zone batted East Zone out of the game. Skipper Ankit Kumar (198) fell agonisingly short of a double ton, but Yash Dhull (133) and later Ayush Badoni made sure the dominance continued. Badoni, coming in at 294/2, played with authority and dominance, racing to his second double century in First-Class cricket. Mind you, it was his Duleep Trophy debut. His unbeaten 204, alongside contributions from Nishant Sindhu (68*), took North Zone to a mammoth 658/4 before declaring.

The match ended in a draw, but North Zone progressed comfortably on first-innings lead. Brief Scores: North Zone 405 & 658/4 (Ankit Kumar 168*, Yash Dhull 133; Suraj Jaiswal 1-37) lead East Zone 230 (Virat Singh 69; Auqib Nabi 5-28) by 833 runs.

Malewar’s dream debut lifts Central Zone, Rajat Patidar amongst runs

Over in the other game, Danish Malewar also marked his Duleep Trophy debut with a magnificent 203 in Central Zone’s first-innings total of 532/4 declared against North East Zone. The 21-year-old looked in complete command, striking at over a run a ball for large parts of his innings, and was eventually retired out after reaching the milestone. Rajat Patidar (125, 66 in second innings) and Shubham Sharma (122) also cashed in as Central put up a towering show with the bat against a hapless Northeast Zone attack.

The disparity between the quality of the two oppositions was quite stark. Funnily enough, Kuldeep Yadav bowled 20 overs in the first innings and 12 in the second, yet, he remained wicketkless.

North East never truly recovered. Bowled out for 185 in reply, they conceded a 347-run lead before watching Central add another 331/7 in the second innings. Yash Rathod (78) and Shubham Sharma were among the runs again as Central built a mountain of 678 (target). With no realistic chance of chasing, North East simply battled for survival until the inevitable result on first-innings lead.