India fast bowler Mohammed Shami has been picked for East Zone’s 15-man squad for the 2025-26 Duleep Trophy, marking his first red-ball call-up since last November. Wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan takes the captaincy, with Abhimanyu Easwaran named vice-captain.
Shami, 34, last bowled a first-class spell for Bengal nine months ago. Since then his cricket has been limited to the 2025 IPL, where he managed six wickets in nine outings for Sunrisers Hyderabad. “Red-ball cricket keeps me honest,” Shami said earlier this year, and the selectors clearly feel the same way.
Kishan has been in tidy form for Nottinghamshire this summer, registering back-to-back fifties in Division One. Speaking after the squad was announced, he kept things simple: “I’m enjoying my batting and I’m happy to do whatever the team needs.”
The group mixes experience with a few newer names. Bengal quicks Akash Deep and Mukesh Kumar return, while Assam all-rounder Riyan Parag – fresh from a strong white-ball season – offers a middle-order option. Jharkhand pair Virat Singh and Sharandeep Singh, the state’s leading run-scorers last Ranji season, have been rewarded as well.
Fourteen-year-old Vaibhav Suryavanshi, who smashed the fastest Youth ODI hundred on the Under-19 tour of England, is among six stand-bys. Selector Alokendu Lahiri called that decision “a nod to potential rather than immediate need”, adding, “He’s fearless, but we don’t want to rush him.”
Conspicuous by their absence are Bengal’s Sudip Chatterjee, the zone’s highest Ranji run-getter last term, and Sudip Kumar Gharami, who sits only in the reserve list. Lahiri accepted eyebrows might rise: “Form is one thing; balance is another. We’ve prioritised versatility.”
The six-team Duleep Trophy again uses the zonal format, with squads chosen by zone selectors – not the national panel – a system last seen in 2023-24 when South Zone lifted the cup. East Zone open the new campaign against North Zone on 28 August at the BCCI Centre of Excellence, Bengaluru.
Former India seamer Tinu Yohannan, now a television analyst, believes Shami’s presence is as much mentoring as fast bowling. “Just having him around the dressing-room is worth 10-15 runs every innings. Younger lads feed off his know-how,” he said.
Short tour, long stakes: early-season form in this competition often feeds directly into the Ranji Trophy and, occasionally, the national pecking order. A fit and firing Shami would strengthen Bengal’s—and perhaps India’s—red-ball plans heading into a busy winter.
East Zone squad
Ishan Kishan (capt), Abhimanyu Easwaran (vc), Sandeep Patnaik, Virat Singh, Denish Das, Sridam Paul, Sharandeep Singh, Kumar Kushagra, Riyan Parag, Utkarsh Singh, Manishi, Suraj Sindhu Jaiswal, Mukesh Kumar, Akash Deep, Mohammed Shami.
Stand-bys: Mukhtar Hussain, Aasirwad Swain, Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Swastik Samal, Sudip Kumar Gharami, Rahul Singh.
