The second round of the 2024 Duleep Trophy ended on Sunday in Anantapur, with India A securing a mighty win against India D following the heroics of Mumbai duo Shams Mulani and Tanush Kotian, while Mumbai Indians’ Anshul Kambuj starred with a record 8 for 69 as India C eked out a draw against India B.
With the end of the second round of the domestic tournament, Ruturaj Gaikwad-led team C stands top of the table with one more set of matches left for each side. But the 2024 Duleep Trophy, which moved away from the zonal format, hasn’t been about winning or lifting the title. The BCCI has specifically designed the matches for the comfort of the selectors in picking the India Test squad, which not only includes a first-choice team, but a pool of able back-up options.
The tournament’s opening round saw Akash Deep and Yash Dayal make the most of the opportunity to make it to the India squads for the first Test against Bangladesh, slated to happen next week. But the second round saw the emergence of more options for the Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee and head coach Gautam Gambhir amid a few concerns as well.
India’s first-choice side finds rivals
Ishan Kishan was among the first to stake his claim for a comeback into the Indian team after smashing a sensational century for India C on his return to first-class cricket, thus putting pressure on the likes of Rishabh Pant and Dhruv Jurel, with the selectors yet to name the squad for the second Bangladesh Test.
Gaikwad, who incurred an ankle injury during the match, recovered to score back-to-back fifties, Abhimanyu Easwaran carried the bat through India C’s innings with an unbeaten 157, and India D’s Devdutt Padikkal followed his knock of 56 last week to notch up 92 in the opening innings against the A team. All three are in the fray to be back-up top-order batters for India. Meanwhile, for the middle-order slot, Tilak Varma auditioned with his resilient hundred for India A.
One of India’s biggest concerns about the Test squad has been finding able back-ups for spin-allrounders R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja, both of whom are well past 35. But the selectors were handed not one but three probable future options, with Mulani (89) and Kotian (53) stitching a match-winning 91-run stand for India A and picking nine wickets between themselves. And then for India C, Manav Suthar followed his seven-wicket haul last week with knock of 82.
India were also handed a pool of able fast bowlers. Kamboj of Haryana recorded the fifth-best bowling figure in Duleep Trophy history with his eight-wicket haul against India B, three-Test-old Mukesh Kumar picked up four-fer against India C, Harshit Rana, who was equally impressive last week as well, starred with a four for 51 on the first morning , while left-armer Khaleel Ahmed snared 3 for 39.
Big worry for Sarfaraz Khan and Shreyas Iyer
Sarfaraz, who made three fifties in five innings during his debut Test series against England earlier this year, was picked for the Bangladesh Test match, scheduled for next week, but failed to impress in the two matches he played in Duleep Trophy. His scores read 9, 46 and 16, leaving KL Rahul favourite for a spot in the first XI ahead of the 26-year-old, who was the only player from the India squad told to stay behind for the second round of the domestic tournament.
Iyer, who was ignored for the Bangladesh Test, failed to prove the selectors wrong after scores of 0 and 41 against India A. The India D captain was earlier dropped from the India Test team midway through the England series in February.
Rinku Singh too failed to make an impact in the only opportunity he got in the tournament, scoring just six, while Riyan Parag threw away a 29-ball 37 in the first innings after making a promising start.