CHENNAI: Even as the Indian men's team are getting ready to leave for the Asia Cup in the United Arab Emirates, several star players will be taking the field in the Duleep Trophy semifinals from Thursday. Shardul Thakur's West Zone will be facing Rajat Patidar-led Central Zone while Mohammed Azharuddeen will captain South Zone in the other clash against North Zone at the BCCI Centre of Excellence grounds.
While some of the players like Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav and others have left after the quarterfinals, all eyes on Thursday will be on Shreyas Iyer, who will be turning up for West Zone. Iyer has been the talk of the town since he was omitted for the upcoming Asia Cup. The Mumbaikar had a sensational Indian Premier League, leading Punjab Kings to the final. Before that, he was the star batter for India in the Champions Trophy triumph. Last year, he smashed 480 runs in seven innings at an average of 68.57, including a double century in the Ranji Trophy. Coming into the season, Iyer will be keen to make a statement with his bat, as he has been over the last year or so. While Sarfaraz Khan is not expected to play because of injury concerns, Yashasvi Jaiswal will be opening for West Zone. The youngster, too, would be wanting to maintain the good form he showed in England.
Apart from the India internationals, this match also offers a chance to someone like Ruturaj Gaikwad, who is entering the tie after hitting a century in the Buchi Babu tournament. The Maharashtra batter has not broken down the selection doors with his performance and he would want to take this as a new beginning and put on a show. Same can be said for Rajat Patidar, who was replacing Virat Kohli during the England series at home last year. He will have to climb up the pecking order with his performances.
As far as Devdutt Padikkal is concerned, he missed out a fair bit of chances due to a hamstring injury sustained during the IPL season. This will be a litmus test for the Karnataka batter, especially in the absence of R Sai Kishore and Tilak Varma in the side. The South Zone batter will have to shoulder the responsibilities of being an India player while the rest bat around him. It is a side filled with domestic performers from Kerala, Andhra, Hyderabad and other southern states, but neither B Sai Sudharsan nor the likes of KL Rahul and Mohammed Siraj were included in the side. This provides an opportunity for Tanmay Agarwal, Ricky Bhui, Vyshak Vijaykumar, Gurjapneet Singh and others to rise to the occasion as the South Zone will be up against a strong North Zone.
North Zone might not have Shubman Gill or Arshdeep, but Anshul Kamboj will be itching to make the ball talk if he takes the field. After a disappointing debut in England, this tournament offers him a chance to re-establish his credentials as a top seamer. They will rely on Ayush Badoni to do the heavy-lifting with the bat. Harshit Rana might also take the field and along with Kamboj, who will be running in with the new ball.
While there is more than a month to go for the Ranji season to begin, for some of the players, who are in contention for the West Indies tour which begins on October 2, this is a stepping stone. How they step up in the next two matches could play a significant role in setting up the upcoming cricketing season.
Fixtures: North vs South, Central vs West
Venue: BCCI CoE, Bengaluru
Dates: Sept 4-7
