Rajat Patidar becomes India's GOATED captain as Central Zone lifts Duleep Trophy 2025

Central Zone has scripted the history under the captaincy of Rajat Patidar, as they finally broke their 10-year title drought by crushing South Zone by six wickets in the Duleep Trophy 2025 final at the BCCI Centre of Excellence Ground in Bengaluru on September 15.

The Rajat Patidar-led Central Zone put on a dominant display throughout the Duleep Trophy 2025 to lift the prestigious trophy after a decade and finished off an incredible season. For Patidar, this victory adds to an already stellar run in the last few months.

Central Zone ends 10-year drought under Rajat Patidar’s captaincy

In June 2025, Rajat Patidar led the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) to their first-ever IPL trophy after 17 years and also led his Madhya Pradesh team to the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2024 Final, where they lost the cup to Mumbai in December.

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Now, Patidar won the Duleep Trophy; that was his second major title as captain in just four months. His leadership and winning mindset have become the talk of the Indian cricket circle. His captaincy has risen through the ranks incredibly, and it seems that winning trophies has become his habit.

I love winning trophies: Rajat Patidar

After leading the Central Zone to victory from the front, Rajat Patidar said at the post-match presentation, “I love winning trophies.” He credited the team’s win to the strong mindset and determination shown by the players throughout the tournament.

The skipper especially praised the bowlers for their outstanding efforts, saying they troubled the South Zone batters and created challenges, even when the pitch was good for batting in Bengaluru.

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Saransh Jain shines as Player of the Series in Duleep Trophy 2025

Meanwhile, the star of the Duleep Trophy 2025 was Saransh Jain, who earned the Player of the Series award thanks to his all-round brilliance. He took 16 wickets and scored 136 runs across the competition. In the title clash alone, Jain picked up 8 wickets and added 73 crucial runs.

Earlier, the all-rounder had delivered a strong performance in the semi-final with 8 wickets and 63 runs. Jain’s ability to target key areas, change angles, and deceive batters with his flight made him a constant threat throughout the red-ball tournament.

𝐂𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐥 𝐙𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐃𝐮𝐥𝐞𝐞𝐩 𝐓𝐫𝐨𝐩𝐡𝐲 𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐬! 🙌

Yash Rathod hits the winning runs and finishes it off in style as Central Zone beat South Zone by 6⃣ wickets👌

A fantastic victory 👏

Scorecard ▶️ https://t.co/unz0hJ66yE#DuleepTrophy | #Final… pic.twitter.com/dLcTLrCAz7

— BCCI Domestic (@BCCIdomestic) September 15, 2025

Another standout performer was Yash Rathod, who won the Player of the Match award for his sensational 194-run knock. His knock helped Central Zone to have a strong foundation. Central Zone set the tone from the very beginning of the final at the BCCI Centre of Excellence Ground.

Central Zone vs South Zone Duleep Trophy 2025 Final Highlights

In the first innings, their spin attack dismantled South Zone’s batting lineup, restricting them to just 149 runs. Saransh Jain’s five-wicket haul (5/49) and Kumar Kartikeya’s four-wicket effort (4/53) were instrumental in keeping South Zone behind in the game.

The response from Central Zone was commanding. They reached 50 without losing a wicket on the opening day and went on to post a colossal 511 runs, thanks to Yash Rathod’s 194 and Rajat Patidar’s 101. This gave them a massive lead of 362 runs.

Well, South Zone made a strong comeback in the second innings as they managed to post 426 runs on the board, thanks to a stunning display from Ravichandran Smaran (67), Andre Siddarth (84*), and Ankit Sharma (99).

However, Central Zone’s first innings had already sealed the fate. They had to chase only 66 runs and managed to cross the line inside 21 overs despite losing four wickets while chasing a small target.

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