Legendary Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar was left deeply unimpressed despite East Zone’s massive win over South Zone in the recent Duleep Trophy 2026 final. East Zone won via first innings lead as the game ended in a draw after five days, with captain Ishan Kishan slamming 270 in the first innings. However, Gavaskar criticised East Zone for choosing to bat again despite a first innings lead of 372 and not going for an outright victory. Gavaskar stated that settling for a first innings win rather than trying to bowl out the opponent twice by taking 20 wickets is a mentality that is hurting Indian cricket.
What happened in the Duleep Trophy final? However, instead of enforcing the follow-on and looking to go for a direct win, East Zone chose to bat again despite just over a day of action remaining. Ishan Kishan and co. settled for victory via the first innings lead, and the match ultimately ended in a draw. Gavaskar stated. The legendary opener pointed to India’s recent second Test against Sri Lanka in Colombo, where Shubman Gill ‘s side could not secure a win after failing to bowl out a resilient opposition in the final two days. As it stands, India sit fifth in the WTC standings, with two Tests against New Zealand and five Test against Australia to follow.
“This business of the first innings lead being enough, is one of the main reasons India struggle to take 20 wickets on good pitches. How does a team learn to take 20 wickets if they don’t bowl in two innings in a domestic game? The failure to secure a victory against Sri Lanka in the Colombo Test hampered India’s chances of reaching the World Test Championship (WTC) 2027 final.
