Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has been appointed as the vice-captain for the East Zone in the Duleep Trophy while Ishan Kishan has been made the captain of the 15-member squad, who will be accompanied by wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan. The inter-zonal red-ball tournament will kick off from August 23 in Bengaluru.
Sooryavanshi’s appointment comes after an impressive start to his international career. The young batter has also recently made his debut for India in the UK tour, before playing in the T20I series against Zimbabwe where he was named Player of the Series.
Sooryavanshi handed leadership responsibility
Sooryavanshi has been given a great chance at the domestic level as well with the promotion to vice-captain. Despite his young age, his recent performances have quickly established him as one of India’s most exciting batting prospects.
Sooryavanshi will also get leadership experience in red-ball cricket as he will be working with Ishan Kishan. East Zone have built a team of a mix of regular internationals, domestic players and younger players.
Shami returns to domestic red-ball action
Mohammed Shami, one of the veteran fast bowlers of the East Zone side, is one of the biggest names in the squad. The 35-year-old has not played for India since the 2025 Champions Trophy final but has continued to play domestic and franchise cricket.
Shami has played for Bengal in the 2025-26 domestic season and 13 out of 14 games for Lucknow Super Giants in IPL 2026. His addition adds a significant boost to East Zone’s bowling department and will give him a chance to find some rhythm in the multi-day format.
Strong East Zone squad announced
The East Zone team has some seasoned domestic cricketers like Abhimanyu Easwaran, Mukesh Kumar, Shahbaz Ahmed, Kumar Kushagra and Anukul Roy.
Other members of the team are Sudip Kumar Gharami, Suraj Sindhu Jaiswal, Shikhar Mohan, Virat Singh, Subhranshu Senapati, Denish Das and Abhijit Sarkar. Ayush Loharuka, Sridam Paul, Sambit S Baral, Sharandeep Singh and Swastik Samal have been named as standby players.
Rajat Patidar to lead Central Zone
Rajat Patidar will lead Central Zone in the Duleep Trophy while India batter Rinku Singh will be his deputy. The squad also includes Saransh Jain who has recently made his debut into India’s Test team for the Sri Lanka tour.
Uttar Pradesh leg-spinner Zeeshan Ansari has also been selected after recently featuring for India A in Sri Lanka. Ansari is one of the intriguing names in the Central Zone squad as he did not play a Ranji Trophy match since 2020.
Central Zone squad packed with talent
Central Zone have also picked wicketkeepers Aryan Juyal and Kunal Singh Rathore and the team has a lot of young domestic talent. Saransh’s call up could be especially important as he prepares for India’s Test assignment in Sri Lanka.
The squad is rounded out by Aman Mokhade, Kunal Chandela, Aryan Pandey, Arshad Khan, Ayush Pandey, Yash Rathod, Harsh Dubey, Yash Thakur and Nachiket Bhute. Amandeep Khare, Mayank Mishra, Saurabh Rawat, Bhargav Merai, Kunal Yadav and Kumar Kartikeya have been kept as standby players.
Tilak Varma to captain South Zone
South Zone will be led by Tilak Varma in the 2026-27 Duleep Trophy while Andhra batsman Ricky Bhui will be vice-captain. The team comprises of experienced local talent and young potential players, with a total of 15 members.
Veteran batter Karun Nair, who last played for India in the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy, has also been included. His experience will give South Zone’s batting line-up much needed stability.
South Zone squad includes experienced names
The batting lineup in South Zone has been decided with Abhinav Tejrana, Shaik Rasheed, K M Himateja, R Smaran and Karun Nair allotted to the role. N Jagadeesan has been picked as the wicketkeeper for South Zone.
Tanay Thyagarajan, Shreyas Gopal, K Sai Teja, T Vijay, Vidvath Kaverappa, H Aman Khan and M D Nideesh are the bowlers in the squad. The team provides a good mix of batters, spin and pace to South Zone.
Duleep Trophy set for August 23 start
The 2026-27 Duleep Trophy will offer a crucial red-ball opportunity for the domestic players of India ahead of the new season. The tournament is also likely to draw crowds as a number of the players who will play in the tournament have recently been seen for India or India A.
Sooryavanshi, captain of East Zone, Patidar of Central Zone and Tilak Varma of South Zone will give the emerging talent of India yet another chance to secure better honors in the competition.
