Rajat Patidar has been named captain of Central Zone for the Duleep Trophy, which will be played later this month at the BCCI Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru.
Rinku Singh has been appointed vice-captain. His role makes him Patidar’s deputy in the leadership group and gives Central Zone another India player in a senior on-field position for the domestic season opener.
The squad includes two wicketkeeping options, Aryan Juyal and Kunal Singh Rathod, along with specialist batters, bowlers and all-round choices. The selection gives Central Zone cover across departments for a first-class tournament in which teams must manage workloads over multi-day matches.
Duleep Trophy schedule
The Duleep Trophy is scheduled to run from August 23 to September 10 at the BCCI Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru. Central Zone will begin the tournament with Patidar as captain and Rinku as vice-captain.
The Duleep Trophy is one of India’s major domestic first-class competitions. It is traditionally used to test players in longer-format cricket and gives selectors a chance to assess form, fitness and temperament in red-ball conditions.
For Central Zone, the leadership appointments are significant because both Patidar and Rinku bring top-level experience into the dressing room. Patidar’s captaincy gives the side an established senior batter at the centre of its planning, while Rinku’s vice-captaincy adds support in decision-making through the tournament.
Saransh Jain likely to miss early matches
Off-spinner Saransh Jain has been named in the Central Zone squad, but he is expected to miss at least the initial part of the Duleep Trophy. Jain is part of India’s Test squad for the tour of Sri Lanka, creating a possible clash with the start of the domestic competition.
The first Test between India and Sri Lanka begins on August 15 at the Galle International Stadium. The second Test is scheduled to start in Colombo on August 23, the same day the Duleep Trophy begins in Bengaluru.
Jain is in line for a possible Test debut at Galle after Washington Sundar was ruled out of the first match. If he remains with the national squad during the Sri Lanka series, Central Zone will have to plan for his delayed availability.
His inclusion still gives Central Zone an off-spin option once he is free to join the squad. Until then, the team management will have to rely on the remaining bowling resources and the listed stand-by players if a replacement is required.
Central Zone squad
- Rajat Patidar (captain)
- Rinku Singh (vice-captain)
- Aryan Juyal (wicketkeeper)
- Saransh Jain
- Aman Mokhade
- Kunal Chandela
- Zeeshan Ansari
- Aryan Pandey
- Arshad Khan
- Ayush Pandey
- Yash Rathod
- Harsh Dubey
- Kunal Singh Rathod (wicketkeeper)
- Yash Thakur
- Nachiket Bhute
Stand-by players
- Amandeep Khare
- Mayank Mishra
- Saurabh Rawat
- Bhargav Merai
- Kunal Yadav
- Kumar Kartikeya
Stand-by players provide backup if the main squad needs cover because of injury, national duty or other availability issues. In Central Zone’s case, Jain’s India call-up is the main availability question before the opening stage of the tournament.
The announcement confirms Central Zone’s core group for the Duleep Trophy and sets out its leadership structure before the Bengaluru event. Jain’s final availability will depend on his commitments with India’s Test squad in Sri Lanka.
Source: The Hindu Cricket.