Indian Test skipper Shubman Gill was on Thursday named captain of the North Zone squad for the upcoming Duleep Trophy, beginning August 28.
Gill, who scored a remarkable 754 runs in the five-Test series -- the second-highest ever by an Indian in a single series after Sunil Gavaskar’s 774 in 1971 -- is expected to play in North Zone’s opening clash against East Zone before leaving if picked in India's squad for the Asia Cup.
India begin their campaign against UAE on September 10, followed by the marquee clash against Pakistan (September 14) and then will conclude their Group A campaign by taking on Oman (September 19).
The 25-year-old Gill, who took over Test captaincy following the retirements of stalwarts Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Ravichandran Ashwin, was one of the standout performers on the England tour.
Gill led from the front, amassing 754 runs in the series -- the second-highest by an Indian in a single Test series after Sunil Gavaskar's 774 in the 1971 tour of the West Indies -- as India levelled the series 2-2 for the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy.
Gill's appointment as North Zone skipper means he will be back in the domestic fold less than four weeks after an energy-sapping two-month overseas tour one in which all five matches went into the fifth day.
North Zone will face East Zone, while Central will take on North East Zone in the season-opening Duleep Trophy matches in Bengaluru on August 28.
The final is scheduled for September 11 -- overlapping with India's Asia Cup campaign, set to begin September 10 in the UAE.
In the event Gill or teammates Arshdeep Singh and Harshit Rana get selected in the national squad for the Asia Cup, the selectors have named Shubman Rohilla, Gurnoor Brar, and Anul Thakral as backups.
Gill will lead a 15-member squad that includes strong names like India left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh, Harshit Rana, and Anshul Kamboj, who made his Test debut in the fourth Test against England.
The squad also features seam bowling allrounder Anshul Kamboj who made his Test debut at Old Trafford.
Ankit Kumar, who was Haryana's top-scorer in the 2024-25 Ranji Trophy with 574 runs in 14 innings, has been named Gill's deputy.
His state-mate, left-arm spin-bowling allrounder Nishant Sindhu, has also earned a call-up.
Delhi has three representatives in the squad with Rana, former U-19 World Cup-winning captain Yash Dhull, and Ayush Badoni.
Jammu and Kashmir has the largest representation, with five players making the squad, including senior opener Shubham Khajuria and pacer Auqib Nabi, who was the second-highest wicket-taker in the previous Ranji season with 44 wickets in eight matches at an average of 13.93.
The Duleep Trophy will mark the start of the 2025-26 Indian domestic season, returning to its traditional zonal format.
North Zone Squad: Shubman Gill (captain; PCA), Ankit Kumar (vice-captain, HCA), Shubham Khajuria (JKCA), Ayush Badoni (DDCA), Yash Dhull (DDCA), Ankit Kalsi (HPCA), Nishant Sindhu (HCA), Sahil Lotra (JKCA), Mayank Dagar (HPCA), Yudhvir Singh Charak (JKCA), Arshdeep Singh (PCA), Harshit Rana (DDCA), Anshul Kamboj (HCA), Auqib Nabi (JKCA), Kanhaiya Wadhawan (wicketkeeper; JKCA).
This report includes content sourced from Press Trust of India (PTI), edited for clarity and context.
