Duleep Trophy 2026 Final: East Zone ended a 13-year wait for the Duleep Trophy title after securing a crucial first-innings lead over South Zone in a drawn final at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.
The triumph marked East Zone’s first Duleep Trophy title since the 2012-13 season and came after a dominant batting display followed by disciplined bowling. With the first-innings lead deciding the championship, East Zone ensured they remained in control even as the final ended without a result.
Captain Ishan Kishan was the star of the final, producing a sensational 270 in the first innings. He followed it up with another important contribution in the second innings to finish the match with 350 runs across both innings.
Kumar Kushagra also played a key role in East Zone’s dominant batting effort, scoring a century in the first innings. Their contributions helped East Zone post a massive 708, putting South Zone under immediate pressure.
South Zone struggled to match East Zone’s total and were bowled out for 336 in their first innings. Mohammed Shami and Mukesh Kumar led the bowling attack, taking five wickets between them as East Zone secured the advantage they needed.
With a first-innings lead already in the bag, East Zone chose not to enforce the follow-on and returned to bat. Md Kounain Quraishi then added another century in the second innings as East Zone strengthened their position.
With South Zone unable to overturn the first-innings deficit and little time remaining to force a result, the final eventually ended in a draw. East Zone were crowned champions on the basis of their first-innings lead.
Ishan Kishan leads East Zone’s charge
Ishan Kishan was the standout performer throughout the final. His marathon 270-run knock formed the foundation of East Zone’s massive first-innings total and gave the team the platform to secure the crucial lead.
The East Zone captain continued to contribute in the second innings, taking his match tally to 350 runs. His performance was one of the major reasons behind East Zone’s successful campaign in the final.
Kumar Kushagra adds to East Zone’s batting dominance
Kumar Kushagra also made a major contribution with the bat, scoring a century in the first innings. His knock, along with Kishan’s 270, helped East Zone cross the 700-run mark and put South Zone under immense pressure.
The massive total of 708 eventually proved decisive as South Zone could only manage 336 in reply.
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi part of historic East Zone triumph
Fifteen-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi was also part of East Zone’s title-winning campaign. The young batter scored 44 runs in the first innings and added eight in the second.
While his contribution in the final was smaller than some of his teammates, Sooryavanshi was part of the East Zone squad that ended the team’s long wait for the Duleep Trophy.
South Zone fall short for second successive season
South Zone were unable to recover from the huge first-innings deficit and finished as runners-up for the second consecutive season.
They had lost the 2025-26 final to Central Zone and once again fell short in the championship match. After being bowled out for 336, South Zone were left with no realistic chance of forcing a result after East Zone built on their first-innings advantage.
The final eventually ended in a draw, with East Zone taking the trophy on the basis of their first-innings lead.
Duleep Trophy winners: Recent champions
| Season | Winner |
|---|---|
| 2011-12 | East Zone |
| 2012-13 | East Zone |
| 2013-14 | North Zone and South Zone (shared) |
| 2014-15 | Central Zone |
| 2015-16 | No competition |
| 2016-17 | India Blue |
| 2017-18 | India Red |
| 2018-19 | India Blue |
| 2019-20 | India Red |
| 2020-21 | No competition |
| 2021-22 | No competition |
| 2022-23 | West Zone |
| 2023 | South Zone |
| 2024-25 | India A |
| 2025-26 | Central Zone |
| 2026-27 | East Zone |
