East Zone captain Ishan Kishan dominated the opening day of the Duleep Trophy 2026 final against South Zone at the M A Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. Leading the side, he struck a fine century in the first innings and walked back unbeaten on 111 runs when play ended for the day. Notably, it was during this very innings that he also crossed the 4000-run mark in first-class cricket.
4000 runs completed in 109 innings
The milestone arrived after 67 first-class matches and 109 innings for Kishan. Across those innings he has now accumulated 4060 runs at an average of close to 40, with 10 centuries and 19 half-centuries to his name. His highest individual score in an innings stands at 273. In contrast, he has so far been given a chance in only two Test matches. In three innings across those two Tests, he has scored 78 runs at an average of 78.00, which includes one half-century. Following such consistent big innings in the red-ball format of domestic cricket, it will be interesting to see whether Kishan earns a recall to India's Test squad.
A crucial 94-run stand with Shikhar Mohan
When Kishan walked out to bat, East Zone had already lost their third wicket with the score reading 147. Playing cautiously to begin with on the Chepauk pitch, he brought up his fifty off just 71 balls. He then added a vital 94-run partnership for the fourth wicket alongside Shikhar Mohan, which gave the East Zone innings much-needed stability. Mohan himself contributed 85 runs to that stand. In the final session of the day, the wicketkeeper-batter went on the attack and completed his century, finishing the day unbeaten on 111 off 135 balls.
East Zone close day one on 385
By the time play was called off on day one of the Duleep Trophy 2026 final, East Zone had built a commanding total of 385 for the loss of 4 wickets, tightening their grip on the contest being played at Chepauk. Alongside Kishan, Kumar Kushagra was also unbeaten at the crease on 63 runs. Besides Shikhar Mohan's 85, Abhimanyu Easwaran also chipped in with a useful innings of 72 runs, giving the innings a solid foundation. For South Zone, Chama V Milind was the most successful bowler, returning figures of 2 wickets for 56 runs off his 13 overs, though he could not stop the East Zone batters from dominating the day.
