The West Zone selectors have put their faith in Ruturaj Gaikwad for the 2026 Duleep Trophy, handing the India star the captaincy of one of the tournament’s strongest squads. Shams Mulani has been named vice-captain, while the squad also features the likes of Prithvi Shaw, Sarfaraz Khan, Musheer Khan, Shardul Thakur and Tanush Kotian.
West Zone, the most successful team in Duleep Trophy history with 19 titles, will begin its campaign against North Zone in the quarterfinal on August 23 at the BCCI Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru. Last season, Shardul Thakur captained the side to the semifinals before they were knocked out after conceding the first-innings lead to Central Zone.
This time, the responsibility is given to proven performer Gaikwad, who was in great touch in the recent tri-series in Sri Lanka in the 50-over format. However, he failed in the two-game multi-day series against Sri Lanka. Regardless, Gaikwad is a tailor-made captain, who regularly leads the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the IPL.
The batting unit has plenty of depth with Gaikwad, Shaw, Sarfaraz, Musheer Khan, Jaymeet Patel and Shivalik Sharma, while Harvik Desai and CSK’s Urvil Patel have been picked as wicketkeeping options. Mulani, Kotian and Siddharth Desai headline the spin attack, with Thakur, Tushar Deshpande, Mukesh Choudhary and Atit Sheth leading the pace department.
Why no Yashasvi Jaiswal?
One notable absentee from the squad is Yashasvi Jaiswal, but his omission has little to do with form or fitness.
The India opener will be with the national side for the two-Test series against Sri Lanka, which overlaps with the Duleep Trophy. India’s tour begins with a four-day practice match from August 7 before the first Test gets underway in Galle on August 15.
Since the Test series runs until the first half of September, Jaiswal will remain unavailable for West Zone’s Duleep Trophy campaign. The domestic tournament is scheduled from August 23 to September 10, making it impossible for him to feature and understandably so.
West Zone squad for Duleep Trophy 2026
Ruturaj Gaikwad (captain), Shams Mulani (vice-captain), Harvik Desai (wk), Urvil Patel (wk), Jaymeet Patel, Prithvi Shaw, Shivalik Sharma, Siddharth Desai, Sarfaraz Khan, Musheer Khan, Atit Sheth, Mukesh Chaudhary, Tanush Kotian, Shardul Thakur, and Tushar Deshpande
Reserve players: Jay Gohil, Aarya Desai, Arshin Kulkarni, Mahesh Pithiya, Vishal Jayswal, and Rajvardhan Hangargekar.
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