Duleep Trophy: Sooryavanshi’s 92, Mukesh’s double strike put East Zone on top

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi smashed a record-breaking 92 as East Zone reached 266 before Mukesh Kumar struck twice and Mohammed Shami once to reduce Central Zone to 45/3 at stumps on Day 2 of their Duleep Trophy semifinal

Bengaluru: East Zone vice-captain Vaibhav Sooryavanshi dazzled with a stroke-filled 92, helping his side reach parity with defending champions Central Zone before Mukesh Kumar struck twice to end Day 2 on a high for East on Monday.

With eyes glued on Sooryavanshi in his red-ball Test, the 15-year-old starred with a record-breaking 92 off 81 balls, turning heads with seven sixes and as many fours at the BCCI Centre of Excellence Ground 1. During his stroke-filled knock, the Bihar batter became the youngest-ever player to score a half-century in the Duleep Trophy.

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At 15 years and 157 days, Sooryavanshi broke the 57-year-old record of Laxman Singh, who was 16 years and 23 days old when he smashed a fifty in the red-ball tournament in 1969. He could well have become the youngest centurion in the Duleep Trophy had he not holed out to deep midwicket off Harsh Dubey.

While Sooryavanshi put the bowlers to the sword, his senior opening partner Abhimanyu Easwaran was content to hold the end up, scoring 69 off 106 balls as the two put on 161 for the opening wicket.

Meanwhile, Sooryavanshi’s dismissal triggered a collapse of the Ishan Kishan-led East side as Dubey and seamers Aryan Pandey and Yash Thakur ripped through the line-up. Dubey removed two in two, dismissing Kumar Kushagra on the next ball before Aryan took the baton.

The Madhya Pradesh seamer bowled brilliantly after lunch, taking three wickets in 15 minutes. This included the scalps of Easwaran, Virat Singh and Sudip Gharami. Yash also impressed with three wickets of his own, as East managed to score 266 in the first innings, the same total Central made on Day 1.

However, India internationals Mukesh Kumar and Mohammed might have just put East in the ascendancy with their three wickets. Mukesh did the damage first, getting Kunal Chandela in the fifth over, before Shami came to the party with the dismissal of Aryan Juyal, who was out in the slips.

Mukesh then removed the big wicket of captain Rajat Patidar, dismissing him on a short ball yet again, after a similar chopped-on dismissal in the first innings, as Central Zone went to the stumps on Day 2 at 45/3 with a lead of 45 in the second innings.