Duleep Trophy Final: Captain Ishan Kishan Scores 250 Before Retiring Hurt On Day 2
Ishan Kishan hits historic Duleep Trophy double-century.
East Zone captain Ishan Kishan scripted a historic chapter in Indian domestic cricket on Monday by smashing a monumental 250 runs against South Zone in the final of the Duleep Trophy 2026. Playing a true leader's knock at the iconic MA Chidambaram Stadium, the 28-year-old wicketkeeper-batter produced a masterclass in aggressive red-ball batting, propelling his team into a position of absolute dominance on Day 2 of the marquee title clash.
Resuming his innings from an overnight unbeaten score of 111, the left-handed batsman from Jharkhand systematically dismantled the South Zone bowling attack. Kishan reached his double century in grand style by drilling a boundary off Devdutt Padikkal through the covers, completing the milestone in just 270 balls. He continued his relentless onslaught to reach 250 runs off 301 deliveries, an epic knock studded with 27 boundaries and seven sixes, before severe fatigue forced him to walk off the field retired hurt.
With this sensational performance, Kishan became the first wicketkeeper-batter in the history of the Duleep Trophy to register a 250-plus score, comfortably eclipsing the previous wicketkeeping record of 217 runs set by Naman Ojha in 2014. His extraordinary feat also established him as only the seventh batter in the tournament's history—and the first-ever representative from the East Zone—to record a double century during a final. He now sits in an elite bracket of title-clash double-centurions alongside Raman Lamba, Anshuman Gaekwad, Cheteshwar Pujara, and Yashasvi Jaiswal.
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Kishan’s brilliant innings was heavily anchored by a devastating 230-run partnership for the fifth wicket alongside teammate Kumar Kushagra. Their marathon stand kept the South Zone fielders toiling under the hot Chennai sun for nearly a day and a half, enabling East Zone to breeze past the massive 600-run threshold in their first innings. The wicketkeeper's spectacular return to form serves as a powerful statement to national selectors, firmly putting him back in the conversation for India's upcoming Test squad roles.
By the time the skipper left the field to a standing ovation from his dugout, East Zone sat in complete control at 611 for the loss of five wickets. Following his departure, lower-order batters Md Kounain Quraishi and Anukul Roy maintained the team's momentum, continuously ticking the scoreboard over to further deflate the opposition. South Zone faces an incredibly steep uphill battle as they look to restrict East Zone's lower order before commencing a daunting first-innings response.
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