India's next Test hopefuls in focus as Duleep Trophy kickstarts 2026-27 season

The 63rd edition of the Duleep Trophy is set to get underway on Sunday, August 23, flagging off the Indian domestic season for 2026-27. Aside from it being one of the country’s most prestigious domestic competitions, this edition of the tournament holds significance in light of Indian cricket’s bench strength in Tests. Following an increased frequency of injuries and few players knocking hard on the door of selection, strong performances against the crème de la crème of India’s first-class cricketers could catapult players into the radar ahead of a tour of New Zealand and a home series against Australia.

With the tournament offering an early glimpse into India’s next set of Test hopefuls, here’s everything you need to know about the Duleep Trophy 2026-27 season:

What is the format of the competition?

The Duleep Trophy has witnessed multiple switches from a zonal tournament to teams pickedby the national selection committee. But like in 2025-26, the six-team zonal format has been retained for the upcoming edition, with the squads picked by their respective zonal selection committees.

The tournament commences with the quarterfinal round. East Zone will face North East Zone in the first quarterfinal, while West Zone and North Zone will contest the second quarterfinal. Last year’s finalists Central Zone and South Zone have secured a direct entry into the semifinals.

What are the venues for the Duleep Trophy 2025-26?

The BCCI Centre of Excellence Ground 1 and 2 in Bengaluru will host the quarterfinal and semifinal fixtures. The final will take place at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai, following the BCCI’s decision to move it out of Bengaluru to accommodate crowds, which was otherwise not possible at the CoE.

Who are the captains of the six teams?

After successfully leading Royal Challengers Bengaluru to their second IPL title, Rajat Patidar will look to lift the Duleep Trophy too once again as he leads reigning champions Central Zone. Tilak Varma, who was named India’s T20I vice-captain a couple of months ago, will lead South Zone.

Ruturaj Gaikwad and Ishan Kishan will captain West and East Zone respectively, while veteran Rongsen Jonathan, the former Karnataka all-rounder who now represents Nagaland, will lead North East Zone. Wicketkeeper Kanhaiya Wadhwan will lead a North Zone side boasting of a solid Jammu & Kashmir quotient following their historic Ranji Trophy win in February.

What are the major talking points and who are the players to watch out for?

Having set the T20 world ablaze, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s red-ball adaptability will be under the spotlight. What’s interesting is the fact that the East Zone selection committee has appointed him vice-captain in a bid to catalyse his development as a cricketer and the next few weeks could provide an early insight into how the 15-year old embraces additional responsibility.

Two major talking points ahead of the New Zealand tour later in the year are the reserve opener and the backup pace stocks. With no obvious candidate standing out for the first of those, the returns of Abhimanyu Easwaran, Ayush Pandey, Aman Mokhade - and perhaps Sooryavanshi himself - will be worth watching. R Smaran, who topped the run-charts in the preceding Ranji Trophy season with 950 runs, will look to make a statement having been overlooked for the A tour of Sri Lanka in June. As for the fringe pace stocks, Arshdeep Singh and Anshul Kamboj, both of whom were part of the touring party to England last year, could springboard themselves into the reckoning again with strong returns.

It’s not just about the next crop, however, with veterans like Mohammed Shami and Karun Nair, both of whom have failed to break back into the Test squad, also keen to show that they still have plenty left in the tank.

Duleep Trophy 2026-27 squads

Central Zone: Rajat Patidar (captain), Rinku Singh (vice-captain), Aryan Juyal, Saransh Jain, Aman Mokhade, Kunal Chandela, Zeeshan Ansari, Aryan Pandey, Arshad Khan, Ayush Pandey, Yash Rathod, Harsh Dubey, Kunal Singh Rathod, Yash Thakur, Nachiket Bhute

East Zone: Ishan Kishan (captain), Vaibhav Sooryavanshi (vice-captain), Abhimanyu Easwaran, Sudip Kumar Gharami, Shahbaz Ahmed, Suraj Sindhu Jaiswal, Mohammed Shami, Mukesh Kumar, Kumar Kushagra, Shikhar Mohan, Anukul Roy, Virat Singh, Subhranshu Senapati, Denish Das, Abhijit Sarkar

North Zone: Kanhaiya Wadhawan (captain), Ayush Badoni (vice-captain), Sanat Sangwan, Yash Dhull, Ayush Doseja, Abdul Samad, Nishant Sindhu, Qamran Iqbal, Arjun Sharma, Abid Mushtaq, Arshdeep Singh, Sunil Kumar, Anshul Kamboj, Nikhil Kashyap, Sahil Lotra

North East Zone: Rongsen Jonathan (captain), Bishworjit Singh Konthoujam (vice-captain), Techi Neri, Priyojit K, Ronald Meitei, Jotin Singh Pheiroijam, Kishan Lyngdoh, Arpit Subhas, Akash Kumar Choudhary, Joseph Lalthankhuma, Lalrempouia, Imliwati Lemtur, Vino G Zhimomi, Robin Limboo, Ashish Thapa

South Zone: Tilak Varma (captain), Ricky Bhui (vice-captain), Abhinav Tejrana, Shaik Rasheed, K M Himateja, R Smaran, Narayan Jagadeesan, Karun Nair, Tanay Thyagarajan, Shreyas Gopal, K Sai Teja, Tripurana Vijay, Vidwath Kaverappa, Aman Khan, M D Nideesh

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