Duleep Trophy Final: Kishan 111 Not Out As East Zone Reach 385 For 4

East Zone closed day one of the Duleep Trophy final on 385 for 4, with captain Ishan Kishan unbeaten on 111. The venue is the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. Kishan won the toss and batted. Kumar Kushagra was 63 not out at the other end. The pair had put on 144 without being separated.

South Zone bowled 79 overs and took four wickets. Three East Zone batters passed 70. Shikhar Mohan made 85 and Abhimanyu Easwaran 72. Mohammed Siraj went through the whole day without a wicket. His figures read 0 for 96 from 14 overs.

Kishan and Kushagra take control

Kishan walked in with the innings already built. He never had to repair it. The hundred was his tenth in first-class cricket. He and Kushagra batted through the final session together. Their stand was worth 144 from 160 balls. Neither was dismissed.

Telangana Today put the evening yield at 139 runs from 25 overs, a rate of 5.56. Tribune India reported that Kishan also passed 4,000 first-class runs during the innings. He has spent much of the last two seasons outside the India squad. Kushagra took on a short-ball plan from South Zone and cleared the rope four times.

Siraj without his pace

South Zone leaned on Siraj and got little back. Fourteen overs. Ninety-six runs. No wicket. Telangana Today reported that he operated in the mid-120s kph for most of his spell and rarely touched 135.

Chama Milind was the more effective seamer. He took two wickets on the same report, including that of Mohan. Vaibhav Sooryavanshi also batted for East Zone, though reports differ on his score and on how the top order fell, so those details are left out here. East Zone were 133 for 2 at lunch and 246 for 4 at tea, again on Telangana Today figures.

East Zone day one card

The leading contributions from the opening day in Chennai:

• Ishan Kishan (capt) 111 not out
• Shikhar Mohan 85
• Abhimanyu Easwaran 72
• Kumar Kushagra 63 not out
• Mohammed Siraj 0 for 96 from 14 overs

Four days left in Chennai

The final runs through to 10 September. East Zone are chasing a first Duleep Trophy title in 13 years, a gap noted by Tribune India. Six wickets remain. A first-innings total is already close to the point where South Zone would need a very long batting effort to answer it.

South Zone picked both Siraj and Devdutt Padikkal for the final. Both have played for India. They now bat second on a surface that gave up 385 runs in a single day. Day two starts at 9.30am local time.