India pacer Avesh Khan’s celebratory dance after Tilak Varma’s century in the Duleep Trophy match between India A and India D has gone viral. The game, held at the Rural Development Stadium, is crucial for both teams, who have lost their opening games and need a win to stay in the competition.
Varma reached his century on the second delivery of the 94th over, guiding a ball from India D spinner Saransh Jain past the slip fielder to the third-man area for two runs. His milestone was met with applause from his teammates, and Khan performed Varma’s signature 'Samaira celebration', which had previously gone viral during the IPL and is dedicated to Varma’s ‘best friend’, Samaira, the daughter of Rohit Sharma.
With Varma scoring 111 and Uttarakhand’s Shashwat Rawat adding 64, India A declared their innings at 380/3, setting India D a challenging target of 488 runs with just over a day’s play remaining.
India A, having been put in to bat first by India D captain Shreyas Iyer, scored 290 runs, with Harshit Rana taking four wickets. In response, India D was bowled out for 183, with Khaleel Ahmed and Aaqib Khan each claiming three wickets.
In their second innings, India A declared at 380/3, with Varma and Pratham Singh scoring centuries, and Mayank Agarwal and Rawat contributing half-centuries. Agarwal, aiming for a recall to the national team, was dismissed on the last delivery of Day 2 by part-time spinner Iyer, who took a simple return catch.
Varma and Rawat’s 116-run partnership for the fifth wicket has put India A in a strong position to secure victory and progress in the Duleep Trophy.
