East Zone Tighten Control as Kushagra Falls After Gritty Stand
The final day in Chennai began with a familiar picture: East Zone in control, South Zone clinging to faint hope and a mountain of runs on the board.
No overnight declaration, no generosity. East Zone walked out again with a 584-run lead and the clear intent to stretch South Zone’s ordeal. At 212 for 5, the job was already brutal. By the time Kumar Kushagra finally departed, it had become downright cruel.
Kushagra’s vigil ends to a loose stroke
For most of the morning, Kushagra and Md Kounain Quraishi did exactly what East Zone needed — they batted time, soaked up pressure, and kept the scoreboard ticking. South Zone’s seamers, led by Mohammed Siraj and Chama Milind, probed away, but the pair refused to gift anything.
Kushagra moved methodically into the 40s, Quraishi settled into the 30s, and with every over the chase required of South Zone ballooned into the realms of the absurd. The partnership didn’t blaze; it suffocated. Singles nudged, leaves judged, the odd boundary easing any flicker of pressure.
Siraj briefly threatened to crack it open. He drew Quraishi into a nervous prod, the ball whisking past the edge, then fired in a yorker that squeezed an inside edge for just a single. It was a moment that summed up South Zone’s morning: close, but never quite enough.
The breakthrough came from the other end, and it came from a rare lapse.
On 46 from 75 balls, after a patient, disciplined stay, Kushagra chased one he didn’t need to. Milind offered a full, wide delivery outside off stump, the kind that tempts the drive. This time, Kushagra went after it. The bat followed the ball, the edge followed the bat, and Narayan Jagadeesan did the rest behind the stumps.
A valuable innings ended with a shot he’ll replay in his mind, but it had already done serious damage to South Zone’s slim hopes. The stand with Quraishi had dragged East Zone to 238 for 6 in 59.3 overs, swelling the lead to a towering 610.
East Zone in command, South Zone out of time
Anukul Roy walked in as the new batter, with East Zone free to dictate terms. The scoreboard read like a statement: first-innings 708, second-innings 238 for 6, on top of South Zone’s 336 all out. Every run from here only deepens the imbalance.
For South Zone, the equation is as harsh as it is simple. They must somehow blast out the remaining wickets quickly, then chase a target that already looks beyond reason on a wearing surface. Every over they fail to strike makes that chase more fantasy than plan.
East Zone, by contrast, hold every card. They can bat for as long as they like, set any number they choose, and unleash their bowlers with the luxury of an enormous cushion. With the first-innings lead already crushing, this final day has turned into a test of how long South Zone can resist, rather than whether they can turn it around.
The contest hasn’t quite reached the formalities stage, but the direction is clear. East Zone are no longer just ahead; they’re deciding how emphatically they want to finish the job.
