Sanju Samson Left Out Due to Injury Concerns
India’s domestic cricket season is all set to begin with the Duleep Trophy 2025, and the tournament is returning to its zonal format with teams from six regions — North, South, East, West, North East, and Central. South Zone has announced its squad, naming Hyderabad’s young star Tilak Varma as captain for the red-ball competition.
The South Zone team will enter the tournament in the semi-final stage, where they will face the winner of the quarter-final clash. The game will take place at the BCC Centre of Excellence Grounds in Bengaluru. A win or even a first-innings lead would secure their spot in the final, likely facing the pre-seeded West Zone.
Sanju Samson Misses Out on Selection
The South Zone selection committee finalized Tilak Varma as the leader following a recent meeting in Pondicherry. Notably missing from the squad is Sanju Samson, the Kerala wicketkeeper-batter. His absence is likely due to lingering injury issues from IPL 2025.
“Sanju had injury troubles during the IPL, and his recovery might not be complete yet,” a source close to the selection revealed.
“The selectors were keen to move forward with players who are fully fit and match-ready,” it added.
In his place, Kerala captain Mohammed Azharuddeen, who led his state to a rare Ranji Trophy final, has been named vice-captain.
The squad also features Tamil Nadu’s R Sai Kishore, a key performer under Shubman Gill at Gujarat Titans, along with in-form batter Tanmay Agarwal, who had a strong 2024–25 season. Tamil Nadu’s Narayan Jagadeesan also made the 16-member squad. However, only one Karnataka player, Vijaykumar Vyshak, has found a place in the lineup.
Duleep Trophy 2025 South Zone Squad:
- Tilak Varma (Captain) – Hyderabad
- Mohammed Azharuddeen (Vice-Captain) – Kerala
- Tanmay Agarwal – Hyderabad
- Devdutt Padikkal – Karnataka
- Mohit Kale – Pondicherry
- Salman Nizar – Kerala
- Narayan Jagadeesan – Tamil Nadu
- Tripurana Vijay – Andhra
- R Sai Kishore – Tamil Nadu
- Tanay Thyagarajan – Hyderabad
- Vijaykumar Vyshak – Karnataka
- Nidheesh MD – Kerala
- Ricky Bhui – Andhra
- Basil NP – Kerala
- Gurjapneet Singh – Tamil Nadu
- Snehal Kauthankar – Goa
Stand-by players: Mohit Redkar, R Smaran, Ankit Sharma, Edhen Apple Tom, Andre Siddarth, Shaikh Rasheed.
“It’s a young and balanced squad, and Tilak’s leadership will be key in this campaign,” said a South Zone official.
The stage is now set for an exciting domestic red-ball battle as South Zone eyes the Duleep Trophy title under new leadership.