East Zone spent the fourth day of the Duleep Trophy final turning a dominant position into a near-impregnable one, riding on half-centuries from captain Ishan Kishan and Shikhar Mohan to close with a towering lead of 584 runs. By stumps, the contest looked less like a final and more like a slow, methodical coronation.
Kishan, who has owned this match with the bat, finished with a staggering tally of 350 runs across the two innings. He looked set for yet another hundred until a miscue cut him off 20 short, hours after Tilak Varma had endured the cruelest of near-misses with 99 in the morning.
Tilak’s vigil and a stubborn tail
South Zone began the day under a mountain of pressure but refused to fold. Their last four wickets added 94 crucial runs, a small act of defiance that at least delayed the inevitable.
Tilak, the overnight half-centurion, resumed as if he had slept in the middle of his innings. He lashed Mohammed Shami for a couple of early boundaries even though East Zone had just taken the new ball, announcing that he wasn’t there to merely survive. At the other end, CV Milind joined in, unfurling a crisp cover drive off Mukesh Kumar to get going. For a brief spell, the new ball looked like a liability rather than a weapon as the boundary count kept ticking.
The leather-chasing forced East Zone’s hand. Pace gave way to spin from both ends, and the tempo changed. The spinners tightened their lines, nagged away, and the pressure finally told. Milind, who had looked increasingly assured, fell and with him went South Zone’s sense of calm.
What followed was chaos. Tilak tried to farm the strike and ended up losing Tripurana Vijay to a run-out, a desperate scramble that only underlined how much rested on his shoulders. Soon after, a misjudged single off just the second ball of an over left Mohammad Siraj exposed to Mukesh Kumar. The seamer needed no second invitation, trapping Siraj leg-before.
Tilak’s own end was as agonising as it was inevitable. On 99, within touching distance of a richly deserved century, he mistimed a return catch and walked off one run short, the entire innings framed by that number. South Zone were still miles behind, but at least they had dragged the deficit back from the brink.
No follow-on, just more pain
With a 372-run first-innings cushion, East Zone had a decision to make. They chose the ruthless option that also pleased the purists: bat again, grind the opposition further into the surface, and erase any flicker of hope.
The small crowd that had turned up got what they wanted at first – another look at the in-form Vaibhav Sooryavanshi. Some of them were already drifting towards the exits five overs later.
The second innings began in a rush of wickets. Abhimanyu Easwaran edged Siraj to first slip, a sharp catch snapping him up. Then Tripurana Vijay, alert to Sooryavanshi stepping out, dragged his length back and had the opener stumped for just 8. Two down early, but East Zone’s position remained unthreatened. This was damage to the scorecard, not to the narrative.
Kishan and Mohan understood the situation. No need for panic, no need for extravagance. They dug in first, absorbed the new-ball burst, and then began to shift gears.
Once the lead sailed past 400, restraint gave way to authority. Kishan launched Vijay for a clean six, a statement stroke that signalled his intent. Mohan answered in kind, driving Shreyas Gopal straight down the ground for four. The pair batted with the freedom that only a colossal lead can provide, turning the afternoon into a long, draining session for South Zone’s bowlers.
Kishan entertains, then departs
After Tea, Kishan decided entertainment was non-negotiable. Having reached his fifty, he tore into Vijay in one brutal over: 4, 6, 6, 4. Fielders scattered, the ball kept disappearing, and any lingering questions about the match result evaporated. A second century of the game seemed inevitable.
Then the game tightened again. Gopal and MD Nidheesh found a semblance of control, cutting off the easy runs and forcing Kishan to manufacture scoring options. The slowdown nagged at him. Trying to break free, he miscued one and paid the price. Out for 80, short of the milestone but having already done the decisive damage by pushing the lead beyond 500.
His dismissal did little to ease South Zone’s burden. The scoreboard remained an oppressive sight.
Mohan, who had been the quieter partner, soon followed. Shaikh Rasheed trapped him lbw, another set batter gone just when he could have twisted the knife further. Sudip Gharami’s early run-out added a late blemish to what had largely been a commanding batting display.
Yet East Zone still refused to loosen their grip. Kumar Kushagra and Md Kounain Quraishi settled in, blunting the tired attack and adding a composed, unbeaten half-century stand to close the day. No risks, no drama, just professional accumulation as the lead swelled into the realms of the absurd.
By the time the players walked off, East Zone’s advantage stood at 584. The trophy, in all but name, was already in their hands. The only real question left is how long South Zone can delay the inevitable on the final day.
