Bengaluru, Aug 28 (IANS) Centuries from Danish Malewar and Rajat Patidar have placed Central Zone firmly in control on the opening day of their Duleep Trophy clash against North East Zone at the BCCI Centre of Excellence on Thursday.

At stumps, Central Zone reached 432/2 in 77 overs, with Malewar unbeaten on 198 off 219 balls, laced with 35 fours and a six. Patidar, captaining in place of injured Dhruv Jurel, hit 125 off just 96 balls – his 14th first-class century laced with 21 fours and three sixes, as the duo ensured Central Zone seized early momentum.

Pushed into batting first by North East Zone, Central Zone suffered an early blow when Ayush Pandey was dismissed for just three by Akash Kumar. With Malewar coming in, Aryan Juyal stabilised Central Zone’s innings by making 60 off 100 balls, including hitting eight boundaries before retiring hurt.

After that, Patidar walked in and brought his half-century in just 42 balls. His whirlwind batting continued when he reached his century off just 80 balls, before eventually being dismissed for 125 by Jotin Pheiroijam.

Malewar, meanwhile, also reached his third first-class century in 144 balls and became the first Vidarbha batter to score a century on debut in the Duleep Trophy. What makes it even more special is that Malewar had hit a match-defining 153 and 73 in the Ranji Trophy final, which played one of the vital roles in Vidarbha winning the championship at its home turf in Nagpur.

Malewar got past 150 in 185 balls and remained unbeaten on 198 at stumps, with his fellow Vidarbha teammate Yash Rathod not out on 32 off 37 balls. Malewar, 21, has now scored two centuries and three scores above 70 in his last four first-class appearances, and his good showings may soon put him on India A radar.

Brief Scores: Central Zone 432/2 in 77 overs (Danish Malewar 198 not out, Rajat Patidar 125; Jotin Pheiroijam 1-56, Akash Kumar 1-73) against North East Zone.

–IANS

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