Central Zone maintained their all-conquering streak on Day 3 of the Duleep Trophy 2025 final but South Zone displayed determination towards the end of the day to remain in the fight at the BCCI Centre of Excellence Ground, Bengaluru. Picking up from their good position on Day 2, Central Zone batsmen Yash Rathod and Saransh Jain continued the momentum with a solid stand. Saransh, who was confident at the crease, scored a well-crafted half-century before getting out to spinner Ankit Sharma for 69 runs off 193 balls. The pair contributed a marathon 176 runs for the sixth wicket, which gave Central a strong grip on the match. Following Saransh's ousting, Deepak Chahar, a pacer, came in with Rathod and the two continued to keep the scoreboard running with a useful 58-run partnership for the seventh wicket. Rathod was the star of the game, batting with incredible patience. He reached the 150-run mark and was set for a double century before falling short of it agonizingly, getting out for 194 off 286 balls, amassed with 17 boundaries and two sixes. Also Read | IND vs PAK: Who Won First Match After Every War and Terror Attack His dismissal to pacer Gurjapneet Singh set off a lower-order collapse, with South Zone bowlers mopping up the tail without much resistance. Central Zone went on to amass a commanding 511 all out. For the hosts, Gurjapneet (4/124) and Ankit (4/180) were the star bowlers, keeping their side in the fray with vital breakthroughs. South's top two openers Tanmay Agarwal and Mohit Kale began on a good note with a 62-run partnership in their second innings. Their resistance was, however, cut short as Kale got out for 38, caught at the pads by Saransh. Tanmay too got out soon after for 26 as pacer Kuldeep Sen picked up to give his team the second breakthrough on the third day of the battle. By stumps, South Zone had scored 128/2, remaining 233 runs behind. Smaran Ravichandran (37*) and Ricky Bhui (26*) were at the crease, having added a solid 50-plus stand before bad light ended the day's play early. Having two days left, the first priority of South Zone will be to wipe off the deficit and then establish a lead, whereas Central Zone will try to push for wickets and tighten their grip on the final.