CHENNAI: While Ishan Kishan stole the limelight, the Duleep Trophy final between South Zone and East Zone offered a glimpse of 21-year-old Kumar Kushagra's growing stature, who over the last year has been knocking hard on the door of India’s red-ball pathway.

Kushagra is the quintessential modern-day cricketer. There’s never a dull moment when he’s at the crease: always threading the gaps and finding boundaries. A busy stroke-maker, a heavy run accumulator and, more importantly, a thorough and solid cricketer.

His rise, however, is not a recent phenomenon. Jharkhand head coach Ratan Kumar has known Kushagra since the wicketkeeper-batter was a teenager, and believes the 21-year-old has always possessed the ability. The challenge, he says, was turning that potential into consistent runs.

“I first met Kushagra nearly eight years ago [laughs], when I was the head coach of the Under-16 side. Later, when I took over as head coach of the Jharkhand senior team last year, our primary objective was clear: Kushagra had the potential, but we needed runs from him across all three formats," Ratan told select journalists after the Duleep Trophy final in Chennai.

That focus has already begun to bear fruit. Kushagra amassed nearly 1,500 runs across formats last season, turning potential into tangible numbers.

While Kishan was in his element, motoring towards his half-century, the 21-year-old played the aggressor, punishing the South Zone bowlers with jaw-dropping shots, most notably against Tripurana Vijay, when he deposited the off-spinner deep into the cow corner.

Sensing a tired South Zone bowling unit, Kushagra went on the offensive, scoring another four and six against the same bowler, racing away to his half-century off just 67 balls. His next fifty came off just 61 deliveries, showing his full range, with eight fours and five sixes at the time of bringing up his century. If his domestic numbers didn't already pass the test, the eye test in Chennai certainly did, as he got the nod over N Jagadeesan for the wicketkeeper spot.

Now in India A colours, Kushagra showed another side of his game. If Chennai was about flamboyance and brute force, Pondicherry was about restraint, patience and control.

At 86/4, with India A on the mat, Kushagra walked out to join Sai Sudharsan. He survived an early scare against the new ball but thereafter settled into an almost impenetrable rhythm, dead-batting 39 deliveries before opening his account with a crisp boundary through midwicket off Doggett. When Liam Scott overpitched, Kushagra accepted the invitation, driving powerfully down the ground, with the shot having the imprint of his Chennai knock.

If Chennai showcased Kushagra’s brute force, Pondicherry revealed his patience. He pierced gaps with precision, alternating between elegant drives and effortless flicks. Until the second new ball arrived, it was a batting masterclass in control.

The new ball tested his patience and technique. There were nervy moments, but he put the bowlers back in place with timely boundaries, which helped him regain his rhythm as he motored to another first-class century, this one off 202 balls, a stark contrast to the explosive ton in the Duleep Trophy final. When he walked back with India A on 326, he had given them a commanding platform.

Ratan Kumar believes the “sky is the limit” for Kushagra. He’s already ticked off the 1,500 runs across formats box but, more importantly, shown that his hundreds in Chennai and Pondicherry were built on great adaptability. However, for Kushagra, the next door – India call-up – is the biggest one yet.