With the series against Bangladesh scheduled in September, India captain Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli are likely to play in the Duleep Trophy, beginning on September 5.
The squads for the Duleep Trophy, which will be played in a new format this season, will be picked by the senior selection committee of the BCCI, and it has announced that it wants all the players available for the tournament.
According to The Indian Express, Shubman Gill, K.L. Rahul, Suryakumar Yadav, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Yashasvi Jaiswal and Kuldeep Yadav have been asked to play in the Duleep Trophy.
However, pacer Jasprit Bumrah has been given a prolonged rest. It remains to be seen whether he will be included for the two Tests against Bangladesh beginning on September 19, as India have a packed schedule in the next four months. Also, the impending return of Mohammed Shami, who has been out of action due to an ankle injury since the ODI World Cup last year, is expected to work in favour of Bumrah.
New format for Duleep Trophy
The Duleep Trophy will no longer be played in the zonal format. The Ajit Agarkar-led selection committee will pick four squads – India A, India B, India C and India D.
The tournament will be played in Anantapur, Andhra Pradesh. But, reports suggest that the board is now also to keep one round at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.
There will be six matches and the tournament will get over on September 24.
It remains to be seen whether Sharma and Kohli will be available for the first two rounds in the Duleep Trophy.
Will Ishan Kishan be picked?
BCCI secretary Jay Shah had announced a few months ago that all national players, barring top one like Sharma, Kohli and Bumrah, will have to make themselves available for domestic cricket. It came in the backdrop of Ishan Kishan and Shreyas Iyer being dropped from the BCCI’s annual contract list after they skipped the Ranji Trophy last season despite the selection committee asking them to play.
But, Kishan is likely to be picked for the Duleep Trophy. Reports suggest that the board is keen on giving him a second chance to resurrect his red-ball cricket career for India.
