West Zone 270 (Patel 98, Sai Kishore 5-86) and 585 for 4 dec (Jaiswal 265, Sarfaraz 127*, Iyer 71, Sai Kishore 2-157) beat South Zone 234 (Kunnummal 93, Mulani 4-51) and 327 (Indrajith 118, Unadkat 4-52) by 294 runs
West Zone won the 2022 Duleep Trophy title after crushing South Zone by a massive margin of 294 runs on the fifth day in Coimbatore on Sunday.
Teja (53) batted with resolve and was well supported by lanky Sai Kishore (7), who kept the bowlers at bay for 82 deliveries. The duo added 57 runs in 157 deliveries, handling the West Zone bowlers with circumspection. While Teja got three boundaries and hit a six, Sai Kishore was content in defending and spending time in the middle. Medium-pacer Chintan Gaja broke through with the score at 203 when he had Kishore caught by Priyank Panchal.
“The way everyone contributed was magnificent,” West Zone captain Ajinkya Rahane said after the match. “Just looking to play one game at a time, not thinking too much for the future. Excited about the season ahead, first full season after Covid, looking forward to playing for Mumbai.”
The Duleep Trophy returned to the zonal format this season after an experiment with three teams for a few years.
“I think zonal cricket is very important for those players who have been doing well for their states – Ranji Trophy, Irani Trophy and Duleep Trophy are very important for picking out Test cricketers for India in the future.”
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