After the death of Veera Ballala, the Sultan's generals once again became powerful. They recaptured the regions taken from them by Veera 13611ala and once again became the lords of the Madurai kingdom.

The kings of Vijayanagar had thus tocontinue the half-finished struggle for freedom in the South. But they used different tactics. They decided to surround Madurai instead of attacking it directly. All long the eastern coast, from Kanchee- puram to Rameswaram they captured important places. The people in these regions, who had become disgusted with the misrule of the Sultan's officers gladly accepted the lordship of the rulers of Vijayanagar. Hakka and Bukka beganmaking preparations to march on the Southern army posts of the Sultan of Delhi.