Shikhar Mohan, the 21-year-old left-handed batter, scored a composed knock 85 off 120 balls for East Zone in the Duleep Trophy 2026 final against South Zone and stole the spotlight at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai on Sunday.
Mohan, who represents Jharkhand in domestic cricket and was named in the East Zone squad as a reserve opener. C.K. Nayudu Trophy. South Zone arrived with added star power in Mohammed Siraj and Devdutt Padikkal. Mohan’s selection and performance underlined East Zone’s depth. A player who had sat out the entire campaign until the biggest match produced the most substantial innings of the opening day and gave his side a solid platform.
Because family and friends were watching, his highest score of 207 came against Nagaland at home in Ranchi, an innings he has called his favourite. When the Duleep Trophy final 2026 started on Sunday morning, the focus was on big names like captain Ishan Kishan, Abhimanyu Easwaran and teenage star Vaibhav Sooryavanshi. But by tea on Day 1, Mohan impressed had impressed everyone with his solid technique and temperament. He did not play in the earlier rounds of the 2026 Duleep Trophy and came into the East Zone XI for the Duleep Trophy 2026 final, replacing experienced Virat Singh. Mohan earned his senior call-up after two outstanding Under-23 seasons in the Col. He scored 623 runs in nine innings at 77.88 in 2023-24 (two centuries, three fifties) and 887 runs in 13 innings at 73.92 the following season – among the highest in the country. Those numbers earned him a Rest of India call-up against Punjab in March 2025. In his Ranji Trophy debut season (2025-26) for Jharkhand he made 613 runs in 12 innings at 55.73, with two hundreds and three fifties. East Zone last won the Duleep Trophy in 2012-13 at the same Chennai venue. They reached the 2026 final by beating defending champions Central Zone in the semi-final, with Sooryavanshi, Mohammed Shami and Mukesh Kumar prominent.
