The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) took to X on Wednesday (August 14) to announce squads for the upcoming edition of the Duleep Trophy. A total of four teams—India A, B, C, and D—will take part in the tournament this year, which will also mark the start of the 2024–25 domestic season. Before the squad announcement, there were reports that Indian captain Rohit Sharma and batting superstar Virat Kohli would also be seen in action during the Duleep Trophy matches, but they were not named in the squads announced on Wednesday.
Shubman Gill, Abhimanyu Easwaran, Ruturaj Gaikwad, and Shreyas Iyer will lead the four teams, and star Indian players like Rishabh Pant, KL Rahul, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Yashasvi Jaiswal, and Mohammed Siraj will be seen in action. The Duleep Trophy matches will also help Indian players prepare well for the two-match Test series against Bangladesh, which starts on September 19 in Chennai.
After the Duleep Trophy squads were announced on Wednesday, BCCI secretary Jay Shah explained the reason behind Virat and Rohit’s absence. According to him, Virat and Rohit run the risk of getting injured.
“It doesn’t make sense to add to Virat and Rohit’s load by asking them to play domestic cricket. They run the risk of getting injured. You also need to look at England and Australia. None of their top players play domestic cricket. We must treat our players respectfully and not treat them like servants. If you look at the Duleep Trophy squad, apart from Rohit and Virat, the rest are going to play,” Shah was quoted as saying by the Times of India.
He has also made it clear that for any player to make a comeback for Team India after an injury, he must first prove his fitness in domestic cricket.
“We have been a little strict. When Ravindra Jadeja got injured, I was the one who called him and asked him to play a domestic game. It’s certain now that whoever gets injured and goes out can only come into the Indian team after proving his fitness in domestic cricket. It’s because of the harsh steps I have taken that Shreyas Iyer and Ishan Kishan are playing the Duleep Trophy.”
The first round of Duleep Trophy matches will start on September 5 and are scheduled to take place in Anantapur.
