Follow UsExperienced Indian and Bengal pacer Mohammed Shami, who was ignored by India for the England tour due to fitness issues, has been included in the East Zone squad for Duleep Trophy 2025/26, starting August 28.
Shami, who hasn’t played at the highest level regularly since the 2023 ODI World Cup, will be waiting for the tournament to prove his long-form fitness and ensure his return to the Indian side.
Meanwhile, the East Zone team will be captained by Ishan Kishan, who looked in sublime touch in the County Championship for Nottinghamshire. The squad also included other Indian players like Akash Deep, Mukesh Kumar, Riyan Parag and Abhimanyu Easwaran. The teenage sensation Vaibhav Suryavanshi, who proved his mettle on the Youth tour to England with the fastest Youth One-day century, has been included in the standbys.
The 15-member squad includes a big contingent from Jharkhand, including Virat and Sharandeep Singh, who were Jharkhand’s top two run-scorers in the last season of the Ranji Trophy. Kumar Kushagra is also part of the squad.
This is a return in zonal format for the Duleep Trophy after 2023-24, with the squads being selected by the Zonal selectors and not national. The opening games will be held at the newly built BCCI Centre of Excellence.
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, Akash Deep and Mohammed Shami
Standbys: Mukhtar Hussain, Aasirwad Swain, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Swastik Samal, Sudip Kumar Gharami and Rahul Singh