Duleep Trophy 2023 Final, Day 2: Vidwath Kaverappa claims 4 as South Zone hit back to reduce West Zone to 129/7

Pacer Vidwath Kaverappa registered figures of 4/44 in 16 overs as South Zone reduced West Zone to 129/7 in 45 overs on Day 2 of the Duleep Trophy 2023 final at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Thursday.

Resuming their first innings on 182/7, South Zone extended their total to 213. It was a disappointing score, but their bowlers ensured the team was ahead by the end of the day’s play in the Duleep Trophy 2023 final.

West Zone skipper Priyank Panchal was the first to go, falling to Vasuki Koushik (1/26) for 11. Prithvi Shaw (65) put the batting side on top, featuring in a second-wicket stand of 70 with Harvik Desai (21).

The partnership was broken when Desai was caught behind off Kaverappa. The dismissal sparked a dramatic batting collapse as West Zone lost six wickets for the addition of merely 27 runs.

Shaw, who looked dangerous, followed Desai back to the pavilion. His 65 came off 101 balls and featured nine fours. The aggressive opening batter was caught by Kaverappa off Vijaykumar Vyshak’s (2/29) bowling.

Kaverappa then struck three massive blows to send back Suryakumar Yadav (8), Sarfaraz Khan (0) and Cheteshwar Pujara (9). Suryakumar was undone by a great delivery, while Sarfaraz was trapped lbw for a four-ball duck. Pujara’s resistance ended when R Samarth took an excellent catch at square leg to end his stay.

Shams Mulani also fell without making a contribution. He was caught behind off Vyshak’s bowling for a duck. West Zone were 129/7 when poor weather conditions halted play on Day 2 of the Duleep Trophy 2023 final.

At stumps, Atit Sheth was batting on 5 and Dharmendrasinh Jadeja on 4. West Zone trail South Zone by 84 runs, with only three first-innings wickets left.

---

Sundar scores crucial runs for South Zone on Day 2 of the Duleep Trophy 2023 Final

Earlier, all-rounder Washington Sundar chipped in with a crucial cameo as South Zone added 31 runs for the last three wickets. The left-handed batter, who was unbeaten on 9 overnight, ended up on 22* off 62 balls, hitting two fours.

At the other end, Mulani (3/29) dismissed Vyshak for 13, while Jadeja (2/33) got the wickets of Kaverappa (8) and Koushik (0).

West Zone would have been pleased with their bowling effort, but their batters could not back up the good work.