India’s Star Performer In England Suffers Injury, Will Miss THIS Big Tournament

In what comes as a blow to Akash Deep, the team India speedster is set to miss the forthcoming Duleep Trophy due to injury. 

With 13 wickets and a match-winning fifty with the bat to go along with that, Akash Deep was one of India’s star performers in England. He missed the fourth Test at Old Trafford due to some discomfort in the back but pushed through pain to play in the fifth, where he took crucial wickets and scored 66 in the third innings, batting as a nightwatcher at No.4. 

He was set to represent East Zone in the 2025 Duleep Trophy, which starts later this month, but according to PTI and Times of India, the speedster will miss the competition due to injury, the specifics of which remain unknown. 

Akash Deep is believed to have been replaced in East Zone’s squad by Assam pacer Mukhtar Hussain, who took 26 wickets at an average of 21 in Ranji Trophy 2024/25, and also scored 222 runs at an average of 20.

East Zone will be captained by Ishan Kishan, while Abhimanyu Easwaran will serve as his deputy. The strong East Zone squad also features Mohammed Shami, who is eyeing a Test comeback. 

The Duleep Trophy will kick off on August 28 in Bengaluru. All games will be played at the new Centre of Excellence grounds. 

East Zone squad for Duleep Trophy 2025

Ishan Kishan (c), Abhimanyu Easwaran (vc), Sandeep Patnaik, Virat Singh, Denish Das, Sridam Paul, Sharandeep Singh, Kumar Kushagra, Riyan Parag, Utkarsh Singh, Manishi, Suraj Sindhu Jaiswal, Mukesh Kumar, Mukhtar Hussain, and Mohammed Shami.

Standby Players

Aasirwad Swain, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Swastik Samal, Sudip Kr Gharami, and Rahul Singh