The winners of the Duleep Trophy 2026 tournament were East Zone, and they managed to do exceptionally well during the tournament by defeating South Zone in the final, which was played at MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai. There was a tie in the game; however, because of the massive lead of 372 runs that the East Zone had scored in the first innings, they won the tournament.
There are a number of players who performed exceptionally in the tournament; there are, however, a number of famous cricket players who did not perform up to expectations. The following is a list of such players.
1. Mohammed Siraj – South Zone
Mohammed Siraj was brought into the South Zone squad with the hope that his pace and international experience would give the team an advantage in the final. Instead, East Zone’s batters took control of the game from the beginning.
The biggest problem for South Zone was their inability to restrict East Zone, who finished their first innings on 708. Ishan Kishan scored a stunning 270, while Kumar Kushagra added 101. Siraj also came under pressure when teenage batter Vaibhav Sooryavanshi attacked him during the opening stages of the final, hitting him for a four, six and four in the same over.
Although Siraj showed some improvement later in the match, the damage had already been done. For a bowler brought in to provide a cutting edge, he could not make the early impact South Zone needed.
2. Ricky Bhui – South Zone
Ricky Bhui entered the tournament as South Zone’s vice-captain and one of the more experienced domestic batters in the squad. His early dismissal in the final, however, was a major setback.
Bhui was dismissed for just one run in South Zone’s first innings. The wicket came early and added to the pressure created by East Zone’s huge total. He was given out via a DRS review, with Vaibhav Sooryavanshi believed to have played an important role in convincing Ishan Kishan to go for the review.
With South Zone chasing a 708-run first-innings total, Bhui needed to provide stability at the top. Instead, his stay was extremely short, making his final outing one to forget.
3. Narayan Jagadeesan – South Zone
Narayan Jagadeesan had a chance to play an important role with the bat as South Zone tried to fight back. The Tamil Nadu wicketkeeper-batter got himself in but could not turn the start into a substantial score.
Jagadeesan made 32 before being dismissed. His wicket added to a series of setbacks for South Zone as they struggled to build the kind of partnerships required against a strong East Zone attack.
Across the tournament, he finished with 79 runs from two innings, including his 32 in the final. For an experienced domestic batter, those numbers were below expectations, particularly in a final where South Zone desperately needed contributions from its middle order.
4. Rajat Patidar – Central Zone
Rajat Patidar had plenty to prove after leading Central Zone to the Duleep Trophy title last season. He had been the tournament’s leading run-scorer in 2025, making 382 runs and scoring a century in the final.
This time, things went very differently. Central Zone entered the competition as defending champions but were knocked out by East Zone in the semi-final. Patidar scored only 12 and 5 in the match, ending with just 17 runs.
To his credit, Patidar did produce one outstanding moment with a superb running catch to dismiss Vaibhav Sooryavanshi. But his batting contribution was nowhere near what Central Zone would have wanted from their captain.
5. Ruturaj Gaikwad – West Zone
Ruturaj Gaikwad was handed the captaincy of a strong West Zone side that included names such as Prithvi Shaw, Sarfaraz Khan, Musheer Khan and Shardul Thakur. West Zone’s campaign ended quickly, though, as North Zone defeated them by 52 runs in the quarter-final.
Gaikwad’s own batting return was mixed. He scored only five in the first innings but came back with a 66 off 70 balls in the second. That was a useful knock, but it was not enough to take West Zone across the line.
With 71 runs from two innings, Gaikwad was unable to give his star-studded team the sort of leadership performance expected from its captain.
Also Read:Ishan Kishan’s Explosive 4,6,6,4 Stuns DC Bowler in Duleep Trophy Final
Final Thoughts on the Duleep Trophy 2026
The Duleep Trophy 2026 once again showed that reputation alone cannot guarantee success in domestic cricket. Siraj, Bhui, Jagadeesan, Patidar and Gaikwad will now look to leave these disappointing performances behind and respond strongly in their next assignments.
