Harsh Dubey influential with bat and ball as Central Zone face East Zone in Duleep Trophy semi-final

Harsh Dubey produced important contributions with both bat and ball for Central Zone against East Zone in the Duleep Trophy 2026 semi-final at the BCCI Centre of Excellence in 2026, taking four wickets and adding 27 with the bat.

The six-zone Duleep Trophy has moved into its semi-final stage after East Zone beat Northeast Zone by an innings and 210 runs in the quarter-final; Central Zone advanced directly to the last four as the defending champions. The semi-final fixtures are Central Zone versus East Zone and North Zone versus South Zone.

Central Zone were dismissed for 266 in their first innings on Day 1, with Rinku Singh the side's top scorer as East Zone bowlers maintained control of the session. That top-order collapse in Central's first innings set the match up for a contest between East's batting and Central's lower-order resistance.

East Zone began their reply on Day 2 with Vaibhav Sooryavanshi opening, and the pair of openers put on a 161-run partnership. Sooryavanshi scored 92 in the stand and, at the age of 15, became the youngest half-centurion in Duleep Trophy history.

Harsh Dubey contributed 27 runs from 38 deliveries for Central Zone, striking four boundaries and a six and sharing a 55-run partnership for the sixth wicket with Rinku Singh. That contribution provided stability to Central's lower-middle order after the earlier top-order collapse.

With the ball, Dubey supplied a decisive breakthrough after East Zone's 161-run opening stand and dismissed Sooryavanshi just short of a century. He finished the innings as Central Zone's leading wicket-taker, claiming four wickets from 15 overs.

Dubey entered the Duleep Trophy as an established domestic first-class performer for Vidarbha, with 136 wickets from 28 first-class matches on his record. He made his ODI debut for India against Afghanistan in 2026 and picked up 4 wickets in 2 games. No, Harsh Dubey has not played an official Test match for the senior Indian national cricket team.

The match at the BCCI Centre of Excellence continues the semi-final between Central Zone and East Zone, while North Zone and South Zone meet in the other semi-final.