Ishan Kishan leads East Zone to Duleep Trophy title, extends captaincy record

Ishan Kishan extended his unbeaten record as a first-class captain to 16 matches after leading East Zone to their third Duleep Trophy title. Kishan scored 350 runs in the final and credited his team’s collective effort for the victory

Chennai: India international Ishan Kishan extended his unbeaten record as captain in first-class cricket after leading East Zone to their third-ever Duleep Trophy title on Thursday.

Kishan was in stellar form in the final against South Zone, scoring 350 runs across two innings to lead his side to victory on the first-innings lead. With the victory, Kishan has also extended his record of being unbeaten as captain in first-class cricket to 16 matches. His run began in 2018 and is now in its ninth year.

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This has taken him into the top 10 of the list of unbeaten captains in first-class cricket. As per CricViz, the list is headed by former Sri Lanka cricketer Mahinda Halangoda, who was unbeaten in 30 first-class matches as skipper.

Meanwhile, Kishan credited the team’s collective effort for their win.

“We won this title as a group. I think everyone was taking care of each other, which was the most important thing for me. I think I’ve been a good leader (offered a cheeky smile), but I think the journey doesn’t end here.

“You need to keep getting better in all the departments. Whether you’re fielding or batting, you’ll always make mistakes. So we just need to rectify that and get better day by day,” Kishan said in the post-match presentation ceremony.

The Duleep Trophy win is Kishan’s second title as captain after winning the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy for Jharkhand in the 2025-26 season.

Reflecting on his approach and mindset during his time away from the national team, the wicketkeeper-batter highlighted how the period helped him mature both as a cricketer and as a captain.

“I think it was more about just being calmer after the break, being more into the game, knowing what’s important, how aware you are of the game and how you are reading the situation. You need to take care of each other, try and help each and every ball, so they don’t get into that zone where I was.

“So I was just trying to help everyone, and it’s been a good transformation for me as well. I’ve been more calm, more aware of situations, and more hungry. You want to perform for your team. You need to make your team win, and that is something which changed in me. Hundred percent, that is going to be there (on being that cheeky guy) till I turn ninety,” he added.