The Duleep Trophy team for East Zone has been announced on Wednesday. Ishan Kishan and Vaibhav Suryavanshi have been handed leadership roles for the upcoming domestic tournament. Ishan Kishan will lead the team for East Zone, with Vaibhav Suryavanshi given the role of vice-captain to Ishan.
The Duleep Trophy is a domestic first-class cricket tournament, in which teams from different regions play against each other in a multi-day game. It begins on August 23, 2026 and runs until September 10, 2026, marking the start of the Indian domestic cricket season.
New role assigned to Vaibhav Suryavanshi
The role of vice-captain for Vaibhav Suryavanshi will be important for the 15-year-old boy who has been showcasing his talent across the world. This is the first time that he will be in a leadership role for a domestic tournament in India; This will help him develop his leadership skills under Ishan Kishan, who is also mentoring the teenage sensation in the India national cricket team.
The southpaw is the only player from Bihar to represent in the Duleep Trophy. He has also been called up for the Under-19 circuit, Tata Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 and the Men in Blue team for his excellent form. The 15-year-old was named vice-captain at the U19 ODI World Cup earlier this year and led the team in the junior series against South Africa.
Vaibhav Suryavanshi’s recent form
Recently, Vaibhav Suryavanshi won the Player of the Series title in the three-match T20 series against Zimbabwe. He scored two fifties in the series and showed his dominance in international cricket.
He scored 50 runs off 19 balls in the first game, 20 runs off 9 balls in the second and 81 runs off 49 balls in the third, which included eight fours and four sixes.
Ishan Kishan will lead the East Zone
Ishan Kishan had earlier led Jharkhand to the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy title. He scored a century in the final. After that, he has been in sensational form for the Men in Blue and is also the No. 1 T20I batsman.
Kishan will look to make the East Zone team proud for the first time in the 2012–13 season. They defended their title by defeating Central Zone in the final for the second consecutive year.
Most players were selected from Bengal
Five players have been selected from Jharkhand; This is the second highest number of players from the state along with Kumar Kushagra, Shikhar Mohan, Anukul Roy and Virat Singh.
The highest number of players are from Bengal, with six players selected: Abhimanyu Easwaran, Sudeep Kumar Gharami, Shahbaz Ahmed, Suraj Sindhu Jaiswal, Mohammed Shami, Mukesh Kumar. This will be a good test for Mohammed Shami as he will look to continue his good form in the tournament to make a comeback into the Indian team.
East Zone Squad – Abhimanyu Easwaran, Sudeep Kumar Gharami, Shahbaz Ahmed, Suraj Sindhu Jaiswal, Mohammed Shami, Mukesh Kumar, Ishan Kishan (captain), Kumar Kushagra, Shikhar Mohan, Anukul Roy, Virat Singh, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Subhranshu Senapati, Danish Das, Abhijeet Sarkar.
