East Zone secured the Duleep Trophy 2026 title by leveraging a commanding first-innings lead to overwhelm South Zone in the final. Entering the fifth and final day with a substantial 584-run advantage and five wickets in hand, East Zone opted against an overnight declaration, choosing instead to further solidify their position.
Although South Zone’s pacers found movement under overcast skies, limiting first-innings centurion Kumar Kushagra to an additional 12 runs, the lower order proved resilient. Md Kounain Quraishi, playing only his second first-class match, anchored the innings at number seven. Despite Mohammed Siraj’s disciplined bowling, Quraishi found a steady partner in Anukul Roy. The duo frustrated the South Zone attack, forcing the opposition to exhaust all their reviews by the 76th over. By the lunch interval, both batters remained unbeaten, with Quraishi on 76 and Roy on 37.
The momentum continued after the break as Quraishi reached his maiden first-class century, punctuating the milestone by hitting consecutive sixes off Tripurana Vijay. Their 150-run partnership was eventually broken in the 99th over when Roy was dismissed, prompting Ishan Kishan to declare the innings at 388/7. This result confirmed East Zone’s third Duleep Trophy title, extending Kishan’s unbeaten streak as a first-class captain to 16 matches.
Ishan Kishan was named Player of the Match for his record-breaking aggregate of 350 runs, the highest ever in a Duleep Trophy game. Reflecting on his performance and leadership, Kishan described his recent time away from the national setup as a period of personal transformation, noting that he has become a more composed and situationally aware leader. Meanwhile, South Zone captain Tilak Varma, who was named Player of the Series, expressed regret over his team’s slow start on the opening day, which allowed East Zone to post a massive 708-run first innings total.
The match concluded in a draw, with East Zone winning on the basis of their first-innings lead. Brief Scores: East Zone 708 (Ishan Kishan 270, Kumar Kushagra 101; Tripurana Vijay 4-180) and 388/7 (Md Kounain Quraishi 116*, Ishan Kishan 80; MD Nidheesh 2-28) drew with South Zone 336 (Tilak Varma 99, Devdutt Padikkal 62; Mukesh Kumar 3-62). The report also notes that when East Zone went to stumps on 212/5, a mammoth 584 runs ahead, the writing was already on the wall at the end of the fourth day itself. The report also notes that but Md Kounain Quraishi, at No.7, held one end to ensure there was no sudden collapse, mohammed Siraj hit the right notes. The report also notes that but it did little to deter them, spin was pressed into action after the break. The report also notes that taking the lead past 750, he celebrated it by clubbing Vijay for back-to-back sixes. The report also notes that having won the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy last season, it was an extension of Kishan’s success at the domestic level as skipper.
