East Zone chase a first Duleep Trophy title since 2012-13 in the Chepauk final

The Duleep Trophy final begins at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Sunday, with East Zone seeking a title they have not held for more than a decade against the tournament's most decorated side

Both semi-finals were won by the chasing side, and both were closer than the eventual margins suggest. East Zone beat Central Zone by four wickets, South Zone beat North Zone by seven.

South Zone arrive as the competition's dominant team, with 12 titles and the most recent of them in 2023. East Zone have won it twice, the last time in 2012-13.

The final is scheduled for five days in Chennai, and both squads have been reinforced since the semi-finals.

How East Zone got here

East Zone's semi-final against Central Zone at the BCCI Centre of Excellence turned on a first innings they matched exactly. Central made 266 and East replied with 266 from 57 overs, which left the game to be decided by the second innings.

Central were then bowled out for 158, Mukesh Kumar taking four wickets and Mohammed Shami three, and East knocked off the 159 they needed, reaching 162 for 6 to win by four wickets.

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi made 92 in the first innings and 40 in the chase. Ishan Kishan, who captains the side and keeps wicket, finished it with an unbeaten 39.

Beating Central, who came into the tournament as the holders, is the result that has given East Zone their standing in this final.

How South Zone got here

South Zone's semi-final was the higher-scoring of the two. North Zone chose to bat and were dismissed for 195. South replied with 312, and then had to bat again after North's second-innings 297.

The target of 181 was reached for the loss of three wickets. Tilak Varma, the captain, made an unbeaten 116 and a further 51 across the match.

Vidhwath Kaverappa took four for 66 in the first innings and MD Nidheesh a five-wicket haul in the second, which is the bowling combination South will most likely go into the final with.

The reinforcements

South Zone have added Mohammed Siraj and Devdutt Padikkal for the final, both of whom were with the India side in Sri Lanka and have had no competitive cricket since.

East Zone's team sheet is less settled. Several of their players are also in India's T20I squad for the Afghanistan series, and their availability for a five-day match that overlaps the national side's assembly date has not been resolved.

That question covers Kishan and Sooryavanshi on one side and Tilak Varma on the other, which means both team sheets are waiting on the same decision.

Conditions at Chepauk

The MA Chidambaram Stadium usually gives batters a reliable surface early, with even bounce and enough pace to score, before the spinners become the more important bowlers as the match wears on.

Both squads are built to exploit that. South have Nidheesh and Kaverappa to use the new ball, while East can call on Shami and Mukesh Kumar, a pairing with far more international cricket between them than most zonal attacks carry.

A team winning the toss on this ground has historically wanted to bat, and on a five-day final that logic is unlikely to change.

East Zone play South Zone in the Duleep Trophy final at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, starting on 6 September.

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