Duleep Trophy semifinals: Tilak Varma’s 106 and Shreyas Gopal’s 87 put South ahead; Central and East finish level at 266
South Zone finished day two of the Duleep Trophy semifinal 90 runs in the green at the BCCI Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru on Monday after Tilak Varma made 106 and Shreyas Gopal scored 87, while Central and East ended with identical first-innings totals of 266 on the adjacent ground.
South began the day on 40 for two but were reduced to 80 for five following a fierce spell from India pacer Gurnoor Brar, who finished with four for 70; Tilak and Shreyas then put together a 175-run partnership that swung momentum back to the Southern side, leaving the innings at 285 for nine at stumps.
Tilak Varma remained at the crease throughout, finishing on 106 (batting) off 225 balls with seven fours; his hundred came from 219 deliveries and followed a patient, boundary-less first fifty that took 149 balls, the first boundary arriving only on his 154th legal delivery.
Shreyas Gopal compiled 87 off 169 balls, reaching his fifty from 107 deliveries, and looked set for a seventh First Class century before an attempted glide to third-man brought about his dismissal; the pair’s 175-run stand was described in the report as match-turning, although South lost four wickets late to move from 255 for five to 270 for nine.
Gurnoor Brar produced the early damage in the morning session, and off his fifth delivery he uprooted N. Jagadeesan’s off stump; R. Smaran, the 2025-26 Ranji Trophy top-scorer, was beaten by another delivery that struck the top of off stump, and K. Himateja fell the next ball as South briefly lurched on the brink before the Tilak–Shreyas recovery.
On the adjacent pitch, East Zone amassed 183 in the opening session propelled by Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s 92 (81b, 7x4, 7x6), but from 200 for two Ishan Kishan’s outfit were dismissed for 266, the same first-innings total posted by Central; at stumps Central were 45 for three in their second innings, with captain Rajat Patidar among the dismissed.
Scoreboard details: North Zone 195 vs. South Zone 285/9 in 94 overs (Tilak Varma 106 batting, Shreyas Gopal 87, Gurnoor Brar 4/70). Central Zone 266 & 45/3 in 20 overs vs. East Zone 266 in 57 overs (Abhimanyu Easwaran 69, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi 92, Harsh Dubey 4/66).
Play resumes on day three with South at 285 for nine in their first innings and Central 45 for three in their second, leaving both contests poised as the semifinals continue.