Bengaluru, Aug 28 (UNI) Veteran pacer Mohammed Shami bowled with exemplary control but went wicketless as North Zone finished Day 1 of their Duleep Trophy 2025 quarterfinal on 308 for six against East Zone at the BCCI Centre of Excellence Ground here today.
Shami, playing a rare domestic red-ball game, kept the batsmen in check with tight lines, conceding only 55 runs in his 17 overs. Despite his probing spells, the breakthroughs for East Zone came from left-arm seamer Manishi, who removed openers Ankit Kumar (30), Shubham Khajuria (26) and skipper Yash Dhull (39) to return with figures of 3 for 90.
Ayush Badoni (63 off 60 balls) then counter-attacked with an array of strokes to revive North Zone’s innings, while Nishant Sindhu (47) provided valuable stability in the middle order. The duo added 61 runs for the fourth wicket, the biggest stand of the innings.
North Zone, however, failed to capitalise on these partnerships, losing wickets at regular intervals. At stumps, wicketkeeper-batter Kanhaiya Wadhawan was unbeaten on 42, with Mayank Dagar (28 not out) giving him company.
Apart from Manishi’s three wickets, Mukhtar Hussain and Suraj Sindhu Jaiswal chipped in with one wicket each, while the rest of the attack — led by Shami and Mukesh Kumar — applied pressure without reward.
Resuming tomorrow at 308 for six in 75.2 overs, North Zone will bank on Wadhawan and Dagar to push the score past 400, while East Zone will look to wrap up the innings early to seize control of the four-day clash.
