Shahbaz Ahmed Heroics Put East Zone In Control On Day 2 Of Duleep Trophy Quarter-Final
East Zone took firm control of their Duleep Trophy quarterfinal against North East Zone after an impressive all-round performance from Shahbaz Ahmed and a five-wicket haul from Abhijit Sarkar on Day 2 at the BCCI Centre of Excellence Ground 2 in Bengaluru on Monday.
Ishan Kishan-led East Zone took firm control of their Duleep Trophy quarterfinal against North East Zone after an impressive all-round performance from Shahbaz Ahmed and a five-wicket haul from Abhijit Sarkar on Day 2 at the BCCI Centre of Excellence Ground 2 in Bengaluru on Monday. After resuming at 355/6, East Zone went on to post a mammoth 467 all out, with Shahbaz converting his overnight century into 167 off 244 balls, including 17 fours and four sixes. Shahbaz added 103 runs with Anukul Roy (37) for the seventh wicket to help East Zone cross the 450-run mark. Jotin Pheiroijam and Akash Choudhary picked up three wickets each for North East Zone.
In reply, North East Zone initially offered some resistance, reaching 72/2, with Arpit Bhatewara scoring 32 and captain Rongsen Jonathan making 21. However, their innings soon collapsed as they lost their last eight wickets for just 39 runs to be bowled out for 111 in 42.5 overs.
Sarkar was the chief destroyer, claiming 5/20 in 9.5 overs, while Shahbaz completed an excellent all-round effort with 3/20.
East Zone enforced the follow-on, and North East Zone reached 7/0 in one over before stumps. They now trail by 349 runs and face an uphill task heading into Day 3, with East Zone needing 10 wickets over the remaining two days to secure an innings victory.
Earlier on Day 1, East Zone made a shaky start after being asked to bat, slipping to 138/5 following early dismissals, including Vaibhav Sooryavanshi (8) and Abhimanyu Easwaran (15). Kumar Kushagra steadied the innings with a brisk 55, but his dismissal led to another mini-collapse. Sudip Kumar Gharami and Shahbaz Ahmed then rescued East Zone with a crucial 150-run partnership. Gharami scored a fluent 146, while Shahbaz remained unbeaten on 100 as East Zone finished the day strongly at 355/6.
North Zone take crucial lead over East Zone
Left-arm spinner Abid Mushtaq and pacer Arshdeep Singh produced impressive spells as North Zone gained the upper hand over West Zone on Day 2 of their Duleep Trophy 2026 quarterfinal at the BCCI Centre of Excellence Ground 1 on Monday.
After bowling West Zone out for 187, North Zone secured a crucial 64-run first-innings lead. They then reached 107/4 in their second innings by stumps, extending their overall lead to 171 runs.
Resuming their first innings at 31/2, West Zone struggled to build partnerships as Mushtaq kept the batters under pressure with his accurate bowling. Musheer Khan offered some resistance with a patient 126-ball 31, but West Zone continued to lose wickets at regular intervals.
Shams Mulani provided the biggest contribution for West Zone, battling to a resilient 52, but Arshdeep and Mushtaq combined to clean up the lower order. Arshdeep finished with figures of 3/53, while Mushtaq claimed an impressive 5/39 as West Zone were dismissed for 187 runs in 65.4 overs.
North Zone's second innings began poorly, with Yash Dhull falling for a five-ball duck after being trapped LBW by Mulani. Ayush Badoni then took the attack to the bowlers, hitting an unbeaten 39 off 49 deliveries, while Abdul Samad contributed 30 off 34 balls.
West Zone's spin duo of Tanush Kotian and Mulani struck twice each, but Badoni and captain Kanhaiya Wadhawan, unbeaten on eight, ensured North Zone finished the day with a healthy lead of 171 runs.
Earlier, North Zone had posted 251 in their first innings after recovering from 161/7. Badoni scored 51 before Anshul Kamboj launched a counter-attacking assault, smashing 60 off 52 balls with five fours and five sixes. Tushar Deshpande and Kotian had taken four wickets each for West Zone.
North Zone will enter Day 3 in a strong position, holding a 171-run overall lead with six wickets remaining.
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