Rajat Patidar-led Central Zone beat South Zone comprehensively in the final of the 2025 Duleep Trophy.
Patidar captained Central Zone to their sixth title and their first in 11 years. The last one came under Piyush Chawla’s captaincy in the 2014/15 season when they beat the South Zone by just nine runs while defending a fourth-innings target of 301. Having led Royal Challengers Bengaluru to their first IPL trophy this year, after a runners-up finish for Madhya Pradesh in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, the 2025 Duleep Trophy win is another feather in Patidar’s cap.
Central were dominant in the final. After bowling out South for 149 in the first innings, they racked up 511. Captain Patidar laid a solid platform alongside the 2024-25 Ranji Trophy’s leading run-getter, Yash Rathod, with both scoring centuries. Rathod fell just six runs short of a maiden double ton. A 69 from Saransh Jain – who also picked up a five-wicket haul in the match – stretched their score, securing a massive 362-run first-innings lead.
South put up a fight despite falling behind. While Smaran Ravichandran contributed with 67, the main resistance came from their No. 7, C Andre Siddarth, and No. 8, Ankit Sharma. Ankit fell agonisingly on 99, while Siddarth was left stranded on 84 not out as they were bowled out for 426. The spin twins of Jain and Kumar Kartikeya, who had shared nine wickets between them in the first innings, starred again, taking seven this time; Kartikeya picked up 4-110. Chasing 65, Central got there in 20.3 overs at the loss of four wickets.
Patidar finished as the leading run-getter of the season, scoring 382 runs at an average of 76.40 and a strike-rate of 96.95, including two hundreds and two fifties.
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