Shardul Thakur has been named captain of the West Zone team for the upcoming Duleep Trophy, as decided by the zonal selection committee on Friday. The squad includes top names like Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shreyas Iyer, Sarfaraz Khan, and Ruturaj Gaikwad. The committee opted for Mumbai’s bowling all-rounder Thakur as skipper, anticipating Iyer’s potential selection for the Asia Cup starting September 9.
The Duleep Trophy begins on August 28 in Bengaluru. Shardul Thakur was instrumental in Mumbai’s Ranji success, shining with bat and ball in key lower-order stands with Kotian and Mulani, both now in the West Zone squad alongside Deshpande.
Although Iyer had made himself available for the Duleep Trophy, he hasn’t played Test cricket since February 2024 but was a crucial member of India’s Champions Trophy-winning squad earlier this year.
Shreyas Iyer Misses Out On England Test Tour Despite Leading Punjab Kings To IPL 2025 Final
Most recently, Shreyas Iyer led Punjab Kings to the final of IPL 2025, where they fell short against Royal Challengers Bengaluru in Ahmedabad. Despite this strong showing, Iyer was not selected for India’s ongoing Test series in England, with the selectors opting for Karun Nair due to his recent outstanding performances in domestic cricket.
The 2025–26 Indian domestic season will begin with the Duleep Trophy on August 28, 2025, and wrap up with the Senior Women’s Inter-Zonal Multi-Day Trophy on April 3, 2026. The Ranji Trophy will kick off on October 15, with Phase 1 running until November 19, and the Elite Phase resuming from January 22 to February 1, 2026.
This season marks the return of the zonal format in the Duleep Trophy, with state selectors from each zone picking the squads. South Zone were the reigning champions from the 2023–24 edition.
West Zone squad: Shardul Thakur (C), Jaymeet Patel, Manan Hingrajia, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Saurabh Nawale (wk), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Aarya Desai, Harvik Desai (wk), Shreyas Iyer, Sarfaraz Khan, Shams Mulani, Tanush Kotian, Dharmendra Jadeja, Tushar Deshpande, Arzan Nagwaswala.
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