Left-arm spinner Kumar Kartikeya grabbed eight wickets across two innings against South Zone in the Duleep Trophy 2025 final to guide Central Zone to the title in Bengaluru on Monday.
The 27-year-old Kartikeya, who played for Rajasthan Royals in IPL 2025, was relentless at the BCCI Centre of Excellence Ground, returning 4/53 from 21 overs in the first innings and following it up with 4/110 from 39 overs in the second.
Kumar Kartikeya’s breakthroughs broke South Zone’s rhythm and paved the way for Central’s six-wicket win – their first Duleep Trophy crown in over 10 years.
Kartikeya castled opener Mohit Kale with a beauty in the first innings, squared up Mohammed Azharuddeen twice, and denied Ankit Sharma a century in the second dig with a clever flighted delivery.
A spinner’s dream delivery ft. Kumar Kartikeya 😍🔥 pic.twitter.com/NPPihe9Qe7
— Rajasthan Royals (@rajasthanroyals) September 11, 2025
South Zone were dismissed for 149 in the first innings, also helped by Saransh Jain’s fifer.
Though South Zone staged a strong recovery with 426 in the second, Central’s imposing 511 - powered by Yash Rathod’s career-best 194 and Rajat Patidar’s 101 - left only 65 to chase.
Kartikeya was instrumental in the second innings, triggering a middle order collapse that saw South Zone go from a solid 200/3 to a shaky 222/6 – accounting for captain Mohammed Azharuddeen, Salman Nizar and Ravichandran Smaran in succession.
In the chase, Central wobbled briefly but held their nerve to clinch their seventh Duleep Trophy title.
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Kartikeya featured in only one match this season but still left his mark, finishing with the tournament’s best economy rate (2.72) among bowlers to send down more than 50 overs.
Across 39 first-class games, he now has 176 wickets at an economy of 2.42, including nine five-fors and best match figures of 10/64.
A proven performer, Kartikeya was instrumental in Madhya Pradesh’s maiden Ranji Trophy triumph in 2021-22, where he claimed 32 wickets.
Meanwhile, Yashasvi Jaiswal, who turned up for West Zone in the Duleep Trophy, scored a fighting 64 off 70 against Central Zone in the semi-final and had the third-best strike rate of 93.15 in the tournament.
Introduced in 1961-62 and named after former India batter Kumar Shri Duleepsinhji, the Duleep Trophy has been a key event in India’s domestic cricket calendar, offering players an extended red-ball platform between Ranji Trophy seasons.
West Zone remain the most successful team in tournament history with 19 titles.
