The Duleep Trophy is all set to return in its traditional inter-zonal format for the 2025–26 domestic season. The tournament will take place in Bengaluru from August 28 to September 15, with all games scheduled at the Centre of Excellence grounds. Six zones—North, South, East, West, Central, and North-East—will participate in the knockout-style event.
This format revival follows a series of changes in recent years, including India A-B-C-D team structures and pandemic-induced interruptions. At its last Annual General Meeting, the BCCI resolved to return to the zonal structure, aiming to boost regional representation and strengthen domestic cricket.
“𝑩𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒃𝒂𝒄𝒌 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒛𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝒇𝒐𝒓𝒎𝒂𝒕 𝒊𝒔 𝒂 𝒔𝒕𝒆𝒑 𝒕𝒐𝒘𝒂𝒓𝒅 𝒓𝒆𝒗𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒓𝒆𝒈𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝒓𝒊𝒗𝒂𝒍𝒓𝒊𝒆𝒔 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒈𝒊𝒗𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒚𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒎𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒄𝒍𝒂𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝒐𝒏 𝒘𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒔𝒕𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒊𝒏 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒏𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏𝒂𝒍 𝒔𝒆𝒕𝒖𝒑,”
A senior BCCI official reportedly stated.
Duleep Trophy Knockout Fixtures and Format Details
The tournament will begin with two quarterfinal clashes: North Zone vs East Zone and Central Zone vs North-East Zone, from August 28–31. The winners will progress to face South Zone and West Zone, who have received direct entry into the semifinals, scheduled from September 4–7. The final is set for September 11.
In the Duleep Trophy, each zone’s selectors will choose their respective squads, a move expected to improve fairness and opportunity for local talent. From 2016 to 2020, the competition featured mixed India A–D teams, returning briefly to zonal squads in 2022–23. Last season again reverted to the A–D model, but this year marks a permanent shift back to the zonal format.
Tilak Varma to Lead Star-Studded South Zone Squad
India’s Tilak Varma has been named captain of the South Zone side, while Kerala wicketkeeper-batter Mohammed Azharuddeen will serve as his deputy. Kerala has strong representation with players like Salman Nizar, MD Nidheesh, and Basil Nedumankuzhy included. Devdutt Padikkal makes a comeback after recovering from a hamstring injury sustained during IPL 2025.
Other key inclusions are Tanmay Agarwal, who was third on the Ranji run charts last season with 934 runs at an average of 77.83, and Tamil Nadu’s R Sai Kishore and wicketkeeper N Jagadeesan. Former India pacer L Balaji has been appointed head coach of the team.
Big Names Missing Amid Asia Cup 2025 Preparations
Some prominent South Zone players—Washington Sundar, B Sai Sudharsan, and Prasidh Krishna—are absent from the squad, likely due to their expected selection for the Asia Cup 2025, which kicks off in the UAE on September 9.
“𝑶𝒖𝒓 𝒑𝒓𝒊𝒐𝒓𝒊𝒕𝒚 𝒊𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒈𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒂𝒗𝒂𝒊𝒍𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆 𝒕𝒂𝒍𝒆𝒏𝒕 𝒂 𝒇𝒂𝒊𝒓 𝒓𝒖𝒏. 𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑨𝒔𝒊𝒂 𝑪𝒖𝒑 𝒊𝒔 𝒂 𝒎𝒂𝒋𝒐𝒓 𝒕𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒏𝒂𝒎𝒆𝒏𝒕, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒔𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒑𝒍𝒂𝒚𝒆𝒓𝒔 𝒄𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒃𝒆 𝒇𝒆𝒂𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆,”
A selector was quoted as saying.
Meanwhile, the Irani Cup will also be held during this period in Nagpur, where Ranji champions Vidarbha will lock horns with Rest of India. Notably, Karun Nair, who represented Vidarbha last season but has since moved back to Karnataka, has not been picked for the South Zone squad.
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