The Duleep Trophy 2024 got off to an incredible start with two closely contested first-round matches that concluded in decisive victories. On Day 4, Shubman Gill’s India A was defeated by Abhimanyu Easwaran’s India B by 76 runs in Bengaluru. On Day 3, Ruturaj Gaikwad’s India C defeated Shreyas Iyer’s India D by four wickets in Anantapur.
The cricketers tested for spots in India’s two-match home Test series against Bangladesh and displayed their skills in the historic red-ball competition with some outstanding performances in the two games.
Let’s look at the top three performances from the first round of the Duleep Trophy 2024, from the historic century by Musheer Khan and the incredible five-for by Akash Deep in Bengaluru to the all-around efforts of Manav Suthar and Axar Patel in Anantapur.
An examination of the top three players from the Duleep Trophy 2024 first-round matches
1. Musheer Khan
In the first innings of India A vs. India B, Musheer Khan, the younger brother of Sarfaraz Khan, hit his third century in first-class cricket. On a fiery wicket, the right-handed batsman hit an astounding 181 off 373 balls after India B was reduced to 94/7 on Day 1.
During his lengthy innings, Musheer smashed 16 fours and five sixes. He also partnered with Navdeep Saini for a match-winning 205 runs off 403 balls, which was achieved in the eighth wicket. Out of their partnership of 205 runs, the 19-year-old hit 154 runs with the Delhi pacer.
Additionally, Musheer made some excellent catches in the forward-short-leg position, displaying excellent anticipation and reflexes. His exploits in the first innings were sufficient to put India B in a strong position, but he was unable to trouble the scorers in the second innings.
2. Manav Suthar
In India D’s opening innings, the left-arm orthodox bowler for India C claimed the only wicket of Srikar Bharat. To be fair to him, though, out of all the bowlers Ruturaj Gaikwad used, he only had seven overs to bowl.
But Suthar wrecked havoc in India D’s second essay, finishing with outstanding figures of 7/49 in 19.1 overs and bowling seven maidens. In the fourth innings, at a crucial juncture, the 22-year-old batsman joined Abishek Porel, as India C needed to score 42 runs with four wickets already taken.
In the end, Suthar finished undefeated on 19 off 43 balls, playing second fiddle to the Bengal wicketkeeper and helping his team over the finish line.
3. Akash Deep
One of the highlights of the match from Bengaluru was the Bengal pacer’s effort for India A. As a bowler for Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the Indian Premier League (IPL), Akash Deep is no stranger to bowling at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium.
With plenty of energy, the right-arm pacer bowled, concluding the first innings with figures of 4/60 from 27 overs. For a seamen, his delivery to caste Nitish Kumar Reddy was the ultimate discharge. The 27-year-old produced impressive results once more in the second innings, taking five wickets for 56 runs in 14 overs. In the fourth innings, Deep demonstrated his batting prowess by scoring 43 off 42 balls, which narrowed India A’s loss margin.
Also Read: Duleep Trophy 2024: Rinku Singh joins India B for the remainder of the season
Deep was included in the 16-man team for India’s opening Test match against Bangladesh, which begins on Thursday, September 19, as compensation for his outstanding performance in the match.
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