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East Zone ended a 13-year wait to win the Duleep Trophy for the third time, beating South Zone on the first-innings lead at Chennai’s Chepauk. Ishan Kishan starred with a 270 in the first innings and an 80 in the second, while Md Kounain Quraishi scored his maiden first-class century as East Zone sealed the title.

Chennai: East Zone clinched the Duleep Trophy for the third time on Thursday after overcoming South Zone via first innings at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium on Thursday. The triumph also meant East Zone ended a 13-year drought to win the prestigious title, its last win coming in the 2012–13 season.

Resuming their second innings on the final day, East Zone rode on a maiden first-class century from Md Kounain Quraishi (116 not out off 190 balls) and a half-century from Anukul Roy (64) before declaring at 388/7 in 99.2 overs. Once the declaration was done, the Ishan Kishan-led East Zone set off into immediate celebrations over winning the title.

The contest had tilted decisively in East Zone's favour after posting a mammoth 708 in their first innings, built around captain Ishan Kishan’s monumental 270 and 101 made by Kumar Kushagra. Kishan followed up his double century with 80 in the second innings, and took his match tally to 350 runs.

Jharkhand’s emerging talents played a pivotal role in East Zone’s triumphant run. Apart from Kushagra, Shikhar Mohan produced an impressive 85 on his Duleep Trophy debut and continued the strong touch he has displayed in the last domestic season. The duo, along with Kishan, ensured that Jharkhand’s influence remained central to East Zone’s title victory.